Japan China Trade Down 8.2 Percent in the First Two Months of 2013

Trade between Japan and China totaled $44.99 billion in January and February, down 8.2 percent from the first two months of last year, according to government data released Friday.

China’s global trade, however, grew 14.2 percent in the Jan.-Feb. period this year from a year earlier to $609.31 billion, the General Administration of Customs said.

Japan-China trade increased in January for the first time in eight months, but it fell in February.

The February data suggest bilateral economic relations may not have improved after sharp falls in trade in the wake of anti-Japan demonstrations and a boycott of Japanese products in China over the Japanese government’s purchase of part of the Senkaku Islands from a private Japanese owner in September last year.

In 2012, Japan-China trade shrank 3.9 percent from 2011 for the first contraction in three years due to strained bilateral ties over the uninhabited islets in the East China Sea. The islands are administered by Japan but claimed by China and Taiwan.

In the Jan.-Feb. period this year, China’s exports increased 23.6 percent from the same period last year, a sign of recovery of external demand.

via Mainichi

This article is for general information purposes only. It is not investment advice or a solution to buy or sell securities. Opinions are the authors; not necessarily that of OANDA Corporation or any of its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers or directors. Leveraged trading is high risk and not suitable for all. You could lose all of your deposited funds.