Growing demand from Asian countries helped Japanese exports jump 13 per cent in December from a year earlier to 6.11 trillion yen (74.3 billion dollars), the government said Thursday, according to dpa. The rise marked the 13th consecutive month of increase, the Finance Ministry said in a preliminary report. Japan's shipments to the rest of Asia grew 14.8 per cent to 3.48 trillion yen, accounting for 56.9 per cent of total exports. Exports to China, Japan's top trade partner, surged 20.1 per cent to 1.29 trillion yen as shipments of metal-working machinery soared 131.1 per cent, those of engines and turbines jumped 32.9 per cent and vehicle exports rose 36.4 per cent. Imports from China climbed 14.7 per cent to 1.19 trillion yen. As a result, Japan's trade surplus soared 215.3 per cent to 92.2 billion yen, the first increase in two months. Exports to the Untied States rose for the 12th consecutive month with a 16.5-per-cent increase to 969.9 billion yen while imports from the US edged down 1.4 per cent to 472.1 billion yen. That boosted Japan's trade surplus with the US 40.6 per cent to 497.8 billion yen. Japanese overall imports climbed 10.6 per cent to 5.39 trillion yen, leaving the country's trade surplus at 727.7 billion yen, up 34.1 per cent from a year earlier. In 2010, Japan's exports grew 24.4 per cent from the previous year to 67.41 trillion yen, the first increase in three years, driven mainly by robust demand from Asian markets. The nation's imports were up 17.7 per cent to 60.64 trillion yen. That left the trade surplus at 6.77 trillion yen, up 153.4 per cent. In 2010, exports to the rest of Asia increased dramatically to 37.84 trillion yen, up 29 per cent from the previous year while shipments to China surged 27.9 per cent to 13.09 trillion yen. The figures reinforce the growing importance of Asian markets in Japan's economic recovery.
