Japan's exports rise 5.1% in December, missing expectations

ISTANBUL

Japanese exports posted 5.1% year-on-year increase in December, missing market forecasts, while shipments to the US saw a double-digit fall, according to official data released by Japan's Finance Ministry on Thursday.

Markets had expected Japan's exports to rise 6.1% on an annual basis in December.

Concerns over US tariffs caused Japanese exports to decline in the middle of 2025, but they recovered near the end of the year following the announcement of a trade agreement with the US that saw tariffs cut to 15%.

However, after rising 8.8% the previous month, exports to the US fell 11.1% in December, continuing their downward trend. In November, exports to the US increased for the first time since March.

In comparison to the same period previous year, exports to Hong Kong climbed 31.1%, while shipments to mainland China, Japan's biggest trading partner, increased 5.6%. Exports to Asia as a whole increased by 10.2%.

For the full-year 2025, Japan's exports increased 3.1%, a slower gain than the 6.2% increase in 2024, while shipments to the US and mainland China, Tokyo's top two trading partners, decreased 4.1% and 0.4%, respectively.

Over the course of the year, exports to Hong Kong and Taiwan increased by 17.8% and 15.1%, respectively, somewhat offsetting decreases in the United States and China.

Imports increased 5.1% year-on-year in December, exceeding market expectations of a 3.6% increase and a substantial increase from the 1.3% increase in November.

The data also followed Japan's tense relations with China. Since November, Tokyo-Beijing relations have deteriorated after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's remarks implied that Japan might use force to interfere if China tried to take Taiwan.

Early this year, China announced limits on the export of dual-use commodities to Japan and halted imports of seafood from Japan.