Japan records trade deficit as imports surge on energy costs

By YURI KAGEYAMA
AP Business Writer

TOKYO (AP) — Japan has recorded a trade deficit in April as imports ballooned 28% as energy prices soared while the yen remained weak. The Ministry of Finance said Thursday that Japan’s exports rose 12.5% from a year earlier. Japan’s trade balance has fluctuated in recent years partly because of disruptions to production and other problems related to the pandemic. Although a cheap yen generally works to boost the value of Japanese exports, its drop to 20-year lows against the U.S. dollar is making imports more costly. The war in Ukraine, meanwhile, has pushed prices for oil and gas sharply higher, increasing costs for a country heavily dependent on imported resources to fuel its economy.