Japan's trade gap shrinks sharply in August

By Tuba Ongun

Japan's trade deficit shrank 66.7% year-on-year in August to 930.5 billion yen ($6.3 billion), according to data released on Wednesday.

The figure was down from 2.79 trillion yen deficit ($18.9 billion) in the same month last year, Finance Ministry data showed.

The country's exports dropped 0.8% from a year earlier to nearly 8 trillion yen ($54 billion) in August, marking the second consecutive month of decline.

Its imports plunged the most in three years due to high energy costs and a stronger yen, down 17.8% year-on-year to 8.9 trillion yen ($60.1 billion).