Japan chemical exports rise by 27.4% in Sept, overall shipments up 13%

SINGAPORE (ICIS)–Japan’s chemical exports grew by 27.4% year on year to yen (Y) 913.4bn in September, supporting the overall rise in shipments abroad, official data showed on Wednesday.

Exports of organic chemicals rose by 45.6% year on year to Y174bn in September while shipments of plastic materials were up by 23.8% at Y251bn, the Ministry of Finance (MOF) said in a statement.

On a volume basis, exports of plastic materials rose by 0.1% year on year to 502,486 tonnes in September.

Japan’s overall exports rose by 13% year on year to Y6.8tr in September, while imports were up by 38.6% at Y7.5tr.

This resulted in a trade deficit of Y623bn, compared with a trade surplus of Y667bn in September 2020.

Total shipments to China, Japan’s largest export destination in September, rose by 10.3% year on year last month.

Exports to the US fell by 3.3% year on year while shipments to ASEAN were up by 31.7%.