Tokyo: Japan`s trade deficit narrowed 6.6 percent year-on-year to $9.4 billion in July, with exports picking up on increased shipments of cars and machinery, data showed on Wednesday.
Japan logged a deficit of 964.0 billion yen against the year-before shortfall of 1,032.5 billion yen, the finance ministry said.
The figure was worse than a market median forecast of about 700 billion yen in the red and extended the run of shortfalls to a 25th straight month.
Exports rose 3.9 percent on-year to 6.19 trillion yen, posting the first rise in three months thanks to robust shipments of automobiles, machinery and electronic equipment.
Imports also turned up 2.3 percent to 7.15 trillion yen, underpinned by purchases of oil and gas.
Japanese imports of fossil fuels remain high to plug the resource-poor country`s energy gap, which has been particularly acute since the 2011 Fukushima crisis forced the shutdown of the nuclear plants that once supplied a third of the nation`s power.
