Japan's Trade Deficit Jumps to Record High of 73Bln in First Half of 2022 Fiscal Year

TOKYO (Sputnik) - Japan's trade deficit skyrocketed to 11 trillion yen ($73.37 billion) in the first half of the 2022 fiscal year that started on April 1 — a record high since 1979, when Tokyo started to collect such statistics, the Japanese Finance Ministry said on Thursday.

In particular, Japan's imports surged by 44.5% up to 60.58 trillion yen, while the country's exports increased by only 19.6% up to 49.58 trillion yen, according to the finance ministry.

The previous record was registered in the second half of the 2013 financial year when Japan's trade deficit reached 8.76 trillion yen.

The current increase is mainly caused by rising prices for energy resources, which Japan is forced to import in great amounts. The record figure is also explained by a rapid drop in the value of the national currency to a 32-year low.

Since the beginning of the year, many countries, including Japan, have been facing accelerating inflation, caused in part by Western sanctions against Russia over its military operation in Ukraine.