The Wall Street Journal reports: "Japan recorded its first current account surplus in five months February, on the back of a smaller trade deficit and strong investment income from overseas.
The surplus in the current account, the broadest measure of Japan's trade with the rest of the world, fell 5.7% on year to ¥612.7 billion ($6 billion) before seasonal adjustment, the Ministry of Finance said Tuesday. That was slightly narrower than the ¥618.1 billion surplus forecast by economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal and the Nikkei.
Strong exports and large investments abroad fueled nearly three decades of almost unbroken surpluses in Japan. Yet widening trade deficits have eaten away at the black, amid more need for energy imports to make up the sidelining of the nation's nuclear reactors. An economic pickup has also fueled more consumer demand for products made abroad, such as electronics, further worsening the nation's trade position.
Though most economists don't foresee a sustained current-account deficit, the recent string of deficits has raised concern.
Sustained account deficits might mean Japan eventually has to rely on overseas investors to finance its debts. That could push up bond yields as non-Japanese investors demand a higher return, putting stress on the nation's already strained finances, some economists say.
February's surplus marks a rebound from a record deficit in January as demand for energy and foreign-made goods ahead of a sales tax increase pushed up the nation's imports. Historically, the nation's current account balance has improved in February from the previous month, as exports pick up again after slowing during Asian new year holidays".
