Japan's exports rise 6% in November as shipments to US bounce back

Japan's exports climbed 6 per cent in November from a year earlier, with shipments to the United States rising for the first time since March as uncertainties over tariffs abated following a trade deal with the Trump administration.

The preliminary data released Wednesday showed Japan's total imports rose 1.3 per cent last month over a year earlier, leaving a surplus of 322.2 billion yen (about USD 2.1 billion).

Exports to the US rose nearly 9 per cent from the year before as shipments of cars, chemicals and cameras helped make up for declines in machinery and iron and steel. Imports of US oil nearly tripled, along with sharp increases in imports of grain and other food products.

Japan's deal on tariffs with President Donald Trump's administration, setting the baseline import duty for most products at 15 per cent instead of the earlier plan for a 25 per cent tariff, helped boost passenger car shipments by 8 per cent when measured by the number of vehicles. But the value of those cars, trucks and buses inched up only 1.5 per cent, reflecting the reluctance of automakers to pass costs from higher tariffs onto consumers.

Imports from the US climbed more than 7 per cent, though Japan still logged a trade surplus of 739.8 billion yen (USD 4.7 billion), up 11 per cent from a year earlier.

Japan's exports to the European Union surged about 20 per cent last month from a year earlier, supported by growth in demand for machinery, vehicles and other manufactured goods.

But tensions with Beijing after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi commented on the defence of Taiwan took a toll, with exports to China falling 2.4 per cent on weaker shipments of chemicals, machinery and vehicles.

Despite a nascent recovery in trade with the US, its largest trading partner, higher tariffs are likely to continue to weigh on exports, Norihiro Yamaguchi of Oxford Economics said in a report.

Still, he forecast that Japan's exports will likely improve in the coming year.

Spillovers from robust US AI-related spending will likely support exports as well, Yamaguchi said.