Japan posts trade deficit in October

TOKYO, Nov. 20 (UPI) -- Japan's falling exports and rising imports together produced a trade deficit of $668.5 million, for October, the government said Thursday.

It was the first October in 28 years when the country, whose economy is the second largest in the world after the United States, saw its trade balance fall into the red, the Finance Ministry said. Japan already is in a recession.

Total October exports fell 7.7 percent to $72.46 billion, while October imports rose 7.4 percent to $73.13 billion.

Exports to Asia fell for the first time in seven years, while the yen's appreciation caused larger decreases in shipments to the United States and Europe compared to last year.

Japan's October exports to Asia fell 4 percent from the same month of last year to $35.5 billion, Kyodo news service reported.

Exports to the United States in October fell 27.5 percent to $5.43 billion. It was the 14th straight month of decline in exports to the United States.

Japan also experienced a big trade deficit in August.

Taro Saito, senior economist at NLI Research Institute, told Kyodo he expects the trade balance to come back into the black as crude oil prices are expected to fall further in the coming months.