TOKYO : Japanese exports rose 5.6 per cent year-on-year in August, up for a ninth straight month, data from the Ministry of Finance showed on Wednesday.
The result compared with a 10 per cent increase expected by economists in a Reuters poll.
Imports grew 2.3 per cent in August from a year earlier, versus a 13.4 per cent increase expected by economists.
As a result, the trade balance stood at a deficit of 695.3 billion yen ($4.90 billion), compared with the forecast of a deficit of 1.38 trillion yen.
($1 = 141.9400 yen)
