the value of exports decreased by 28.3% from the same month of the previous year to 4,184.8 billion yen.

Export value decreased by 28%, automobile related brakes May trade statistics

According to the May trade statistics released on May 17 by the Ministry of Finance (preliminary report, based on customs clearance), the value of exports decreased by 28.3% from the same month of the previous year to 4,184.8 billion yen. Due to the economic stagnation caused by the new coronavirus, the rate of decrease expanded from the 21.9% decrease in April. This is the level of decline since September 2009 (down 30.6%) after the Lehman shock.

The major cause of the decrease in export value is automobiles, and the value of exports to the world was 320.2 billion yen, a decrease of 64.1% compared to the same month last year. Especially for the United States, it fell significantly by 78.9%. Nearly 60% of automobile parts were also reduced. In addition, almost all items decreased year-on-year.

Import value decreased by 26.2% to 5,018.2 billion yen. Although it decreased by 7.1% in April, the rate of decrease became large, and it was the same as the amount of exports, which is the level of decline since the Lehman shock. Although the import of textile products including masks from China increased, crude oil and aircrafts fell by more than 70% from the same month last year. The trade balance obtained by subtracting the import value from the export value was a deficit of 8334 billion yen, which was the deficit for the second consecutive month. (Nagata Univ.)

Source: https://bit.ly/2Nb8Mu9