Exports plunge across Asia

TOKYO, Dec. 23 (UPI) -- Exports in November slowed sharply for many Asian nations that rely heavily on exports to sustain their economies.

Exports fell a record 27 percent in Japan during the month, The Washington Post reported Tuesday. Exports from Thailand fell 19 percent, the sharpest monthly decline in 17 years. In China, exports declined faster than they have in seven years, the Post said.

China has also become a strong market for other Asian nations. But, the Japanese Finance Ministry said Japanese shipments to China plunged 25 percent in November.

"Everyone is tanking together," Cornell University Professor Eswar Presad told the Post. "A fall of 27 percent is really striking and portends substantially greater weakness," Presad said.

With Japan officially in a recession, Toyota Motor Corp. said Monday it expected to lose $1.7 billion for the fiscal year ending in March -- its first operating loss in 70 years.

"The tough times are hitting us far faster, wider and deeper than expected," Toyota President Katsuaki Watanabe said.

"The bottom line is that many of these countries that relied on export-led growth will have to rely on domestic demand to get out of this thing," Prasad said.