TOKYO, April 20 (Xinhua) -- Japan logged a goods trade deficit of 5.37 trillion yen (42.4 billion U.S. dollars) in fiscal 2021 following a surplus the previous year, due to increased energy imports inflated by high prices, the Japanese Finance Ministry said Wednesday.
The deficit reached its highest level since fiscal 2014, when Japan's fuel imports for thermal power plants surged with all nuclear power plants offline in the wake of the 2011 nuclear disaster triggered by a massive earthquake and tsunami in northeastern Japan.
Imports rose 33.3 percent in fiscal 2021 from the previous year to 91.3 trillion yen (720.9 billion dollars), marking the highest level since fiscal 1979 when comparable data became available.
Imports were elevated with petroleum imports up 97.6 percent, coal up 113.4 percent and liquefied natural gas up 58.8 percent.
On the other hand, exports increased 23.6 percent to 85.9 trillion yen (678.2 billion dollars), also posting the highest level since fiscal 1979, due to rising exports of vehicles, iron and steel products rose with the economy on a gradual recovering track despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
In March, Japan logged a goods trade deficit of 412.4 billion yen (3.3 billion dollars), remaining in the red for the eighth straight month, with the value of imports boosted by high energy prices following Russia-Ukraine conflict.
Petroleum imports surged 69.7 percent compared to a year earlier to 865.1 billion yen (6.9 billion dollars), up for the 12th consecutive month.
The statistics were accumulated on a customs-cleared basis, according to the Finance Ministry. ■
