Japan's Current Account Surplus Shrinks 54.5% in April

Japan's current account surplus contracted by 54.5 percent year-on-year to 630.5 billion yen (6.43billion U.S. dollars) in April, the finance ministry said Monday.

The balance of trade in goods and services sank into the red, logging a deficit of 287.3 billion yen (2.89 billion dollars), said the ministry in a preliminary report.

Exports plunged 40.6 percent to 3,915.1 billion yen (39.95 billion dollars) while imports were down 37.8 percent to 3,730.8 billion yen (38.06 billion dollars).

The surplus in merchandise trade plummeted 69.2 percent to 184.3 billion yen (1.88 billion dollars), and the income surplus lost 18.5 percent to 1,056.7 billion yen (10.78 billion dollars), according to the report.

The current account balance, the broadest gauge of trade in goods, services, tourism and investment, is calculated by determining the difference between a nation's income from foreign sources and payments on foreign obligations, excluding net capital investment.