Japanese exports plunge nearly 50%• Outlook grim for Japan's export-led economy
• Car shipments to US down 71%
Julia Kollewe
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 25 March 2009 11.18 GMT
Article history
Japan's exports nearly halved last month, the biggest decline on record, as car shipments to the US and Europe plummeted.
Exports tumbled by 49.4%, the sharpest decline since Japan's ministry of finance began compiling trade figures in 1980.
Japan's carmakers have been among the hardest hit by the global downturn. Shipments of cars plunged 64%, with those to the US down 71%. Overall exports to the US fell by 58%.
Demand slumped in all regions of the world. Exports to EU countries dropped 55% while shipments to other Asian countries were 46% lower from a year ago.
Industry figures confirm the dire picture. Toyota, which is expected to post its first annual net loss since 1950, has seen its global production plunge by nearly half in February from a year earlier while Honda has reported a 43% drop and Nissan a 51% decline.
Exporters have been quick to respond to to the slowdown, reducing shifts, suspending factory lines and announcing thousands of job cuts. Economists say they have never seen Japanese companies move so fast to adjust production.
The outlook is grim for Japan's export-oriented economy, the world's second-largest, which now finds itself mired in its worst recession since the end of the second world war.
The International Monetary Fund expects the economy to shrink by 5.8% this year, though many economists think it could be far worse.
The downturn has also sapped demand for imports, which fell 43% in February from a year earlier. Japan posted its first trade surplus in five months, of ¥82.4bn (£580m). |
