Japan posted a current account surplus of 433.3 billion yen in June, the Ministry of Finance said on Wednesday - down 19.6 percent on year and falling for the 16th consecutive month.
The headline figure topped forecasts for a surplus of 415.4 billion yen and a 24.9 percent annual contraction after showing a surplus of 215.1 billion and a 62.6 percent plunge in May.
The trade balance reflected a surplus of 112.0 billion yen, down 13.7 percent on year. That missed expectations for a surplus of 114.9 billion yen following the downwardly revised shortfall of 941.0 billion yen in the previous month (originally -848.2 billion yen).
Exports shed an annual 1.5 percent to 5.422 trillion yen in June. That follows the 11.3 percent jump in May, which came in at 5.054 trillion yen.
Imports eased 1.2 percent on year to 5.310 trillion yen in June, after posting an annual increase of 11.1 percent in the previous month to 5.902 trillion yen.
Goods and services saw a deficit of 81.5 billion yen in June after showing a shortfall of 941.0 billion yen a month earlier.
The financial account saw a deficit of 2.041 trillion yen, while the capital account posted a surplus of 18.8 billion yen.
The adjusted current account showed a surplus of 773.6 billion yen, beating forecasts for a surplus of 714.7 billion yen after coming in at 282.2 billion yen a month earlier.
Also on Wednesday, the Bank of Japan said that bank lending in Japan was up 1.0 percent on year in July, standing at 396.424 trillion yen. That beat forecasts for an increase of 0.8 percent, which would have been unchanged from the June reading.
Including trusts, bank lending was up an annual 0.7 percent after shedding a downwardly revised 0.6 percent in the previous month. Lending from foreign banks in Japan plummeted an annual 22.4 percent to 2.163 trillion yen after plunging 20.6 percent on year a month earlier.
Upon the release of the data, the Japanese yen held steady against major currencies, trading near 97.43 against the euro, 78.64 versus the U.S. dollar, 122.83 against the British pound and 81.11 versus the Swiss franc.
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June 12, 2026 17:14 ET Major central bank action was the focus this week in economic news. The European Central Bank became the first major central bank to move in response to the rising inflationary pressures in the backdrop of the conflict in the Middle East. In North America, the U.S. inflation and trade data as well as Canada’s central bank decision gained attention. The Chinese trade data was the main news in Asia.