Japan improves view on exports for first time in three months

A cargo ship and containers are seen at an industrial port in Tokyo, Japan, February 15, 2022. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon/File photo

TOKYO  – Japan’s exports have been “picking up recently”, the government said in its latest monthly economic assessment, its first upward revision since May as easing supply issues boosted auto shipments and demand for semiconductor-related goods bottoms out.

“The economy is recovering moderately”, the Cabinet Office said in its report issued on Monday, keeping the same assessment made in the previous month, but listed China’s troubled economic outlook and global monetary tightening among risks to the Japanese economy.

Close attention should be paid to possible impacts from China’s stagnant real estate market as the country’s economic recovery appears to be pausing, the report said.

In Japan, price hikes and financial volatility are areas of focus, it reiterated.

The report came after Japan’s economy grew at its fastest in more than two years in April-June as brisk auto exports and tourist arrivals helped offset the drag from a slowing post-COVID consumer recovery.

While price hikes dragged down sales of food and consumer electronics, consumer spending on services continued recovering, backing the Cabinet Office’s decision to maintain its view on consumer expenditure as “picking up” in August.

The government expects the economy will continue to recover as the jobs situation and wage environment improve.