Japan’s Trade Surplus With U.S. Fell in ’96

Japan’s trade surplus with the United States, often a source of trade friction, declined 16.5% to $29.8 billion in 1996 from the previous year, the Finance Ministry said. Overall, Japan’s customs-cleared trade surplus fell 32.4% to $56.6 billion last year from 1995. In December alone, Japan’s merchandise trade surplus with the United States rose 7.8% to $3.26 billion from the year earlier. Its overall trade surplus in December fell 20.6% to $7.40 billion. Economists polled by Reuters had predicted an average decline of about 7.4% to $8.6 billion for the overall December figure. But some had said the trade surplus might rise because of a surge in car exports stemming from the depreciation of the yen, which makes Japanese exports more competitive abroad.