Japan’s Feb chemical exports rise 7.5%; overall shipments up 11.4%

SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Japan’s chemical exports rose by 7.5% year on year to yen (Y) 1 trillion in February, supporting the fifth consecutive rise in overall exports abroad, official preliminary data showed on Wednesday.

The country’s exports of organic fell by 2.1% year on year to Y180.7 billion in February, while shipments of plastic materials were up by 10.8% at Y282.5 billion, Ministry of Finance (MOF) data showed.

By volume, shipments of plastic materials fell by 1.7% year on year to 429,716 tonnes.

Japan’s total exports rose by 11.4% year on year to Y9.19 trillion in February, while imports slipped by 0.7% to Y8.61 trillion.

This resulted in a trade surplus of around Y584 billion.

By destination, Japan’s overall exports to China rose by 14.1% year on year in February, reversing the 6.2% decline in January.

Total exports to the US rose by 10.5% year on year in February, while overall shipments to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)  were up by 13.3%.