Japan's trade surplus plunges 88.9pc in June

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TOKYO, July 24 (AFP): Japan's trade surplus in June plunged 88.9 per cent from a year earlier as demand slowed overseas for Japanese goods due to a cooling US economy and a stronger yen, the finance ministry said today.

Trade surplus in May came to 138.63 billion yen (1.28 billion dollars), falling from 1.25 trillion yen in June 2007, dropping for the fourth straight month, official figures showed.

The figure was far below analysts' forecast of 449.7 billion yen, according to a survey conducted by the Nikkei business daily.

Exports slipped 1.7 per cent to 7.16 trillion yen, while imports rose 16.2 per cent to 7.02 trillion yen.

Oil imports rose 54.7 per cent year on year, while those of liquefied natural gas climbed 56.5 per cent and coal imports soared 149.5 per cent, the ministry said.

Japan's trade surplus with the United States shrank 40.2 per cent, with exports dropping 15.4 per cent as the world's largest economy struggles due to fallout from the subprime mortgage crisis.