Japan January Adjusted Merchandise Trade Balance declines to ¥-1818.8B vs ¥-1258.8B

Japanese trade balance for January came at Y -2790bn vs Y -2487.0bn expected and Y -1304.2bn prior. Trade balance (adjusted) was Y -1818.8bn vs Y -1510.0bn expected and Y 1148.6bn prior. Meanwhile, exports for January y/y stood at +9.5% vs +12.7% expected and +15.3% prior. Imports for January y/y came at +25% vs +22.7% expected +24.7% prior. The data reinforces the view that Japan remains trapped in a deteriorating trade deficit cycle.