Japan exports plunge on dwindling China, U.S. demand

Japan had seen its exports drop faster than what was expected in February as shipments bound to the United States and China weakened. The drop came to be a point of concern for the world’s third-largest economy as it tries to stage a rebound from the coronavirus crisis.

Data from the Ministry of Finance showed that the country’s exports recorded an annualized 4.5% contraction in February. The figure was the first weak record seen in three months as U.S.-bound shipments of automobiles dropped. More so, it placed higher than the 0.8% drop expected in a Reuters poll.

According to Nomura Securities senior economist Masaki Kuwahara, China’s rebound from the coronavirus crisis and a stimulus package in the United States are expected to alleviate Japan’s exports in the second quarter of 2021.