Japan logged a trade deficit of 1.3 trillion yen (12.75 billion dollars) in December for the 18th consecutive month of trade loss amid growing imports of petroleum and liquefied natural gas, dpa quoted the government as saying Monday. Japan's imports jumped 24.7 per cent from a year earlier, to 7.41 trillion yen, rising for the 14th straight month, while its exports grew 15.3 per cent to 6.11 trillion yen, the Finance Ministry said in a preliminary report. Japan has imported more fossil fuel for power generation since the shutdown of nuclear reactors across the country following Japan's worst atomic disaster at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station, triggered by the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami.
