Tokyo, June 20 (BridgeNews) - Japan's trade surplus in May plunged 86.1% from a year earlier to 80.1 billion yen, the Ministry of Finance said Wednesday. The May surplus was below private economists' average expectations of 236 billion yen. The surplus declined for the 11th straight month, the MOF said.
Exports fell 0.9% on the year due to semiconductors and machines, while imports rose 14.0% due to crude oil, liquid natural gas and audio and visual components in May.
The politically sensitive trade surplus with the U.S. decreased 15.9% on the year to 390.6 billion yen.
A MOF official also noted that exports on a volume basis fell a sharp 9.9% in May--marking nine consecutive month of declines.
The fall mainly reflects the recent economic slowdown in the U.S. and Asia. IT-related exports have been rapidly decreasing, he added.
Exports of electric components, such as semiconductors, fell 15.9% on the year in yen terms. Exports to the U.S. fell 29.3%, and those to Asia fell 8.2%. Following the recent weakening of exports, the official repeated that, "Japan's trade surplus won't show an increase on the year (for the time being)."
Imports of crude oil rose 19.6% on the year in May, due to rises in crude oil prices, the official said. Crude oil prices rose to $26.1 per barrel in May, compared to $25.1 in the same month last year, he said.
The yen depreciated 12.4% against the U.S. dollar to 122.56, compared to 107.32 in the same month last year. The depreciation pushed up both exports and imports in yen terms, another MOF official said.
Exports fell 0.9% on the year in yen terms, compared to a 9.9% fall on a volume basis, while imports rose 14.0% on the year in yen terms, compared to a 3.5% gain on a volume basis, according to the MOF.