Japan’s Exports Rose 23 Percent in July. The Deficit Still Quadrupled.
Japan exported 11.51 trillion yen of goods in July, a rise of 23.2 percent on the same month a year earlier. It imported 12.15 trillion yen, up 27.8 percent. The trade balance was a deficit of 634.5 billion yen, against 156.3 billion in July 2025 — a widening of 306.0 percent.
Both sides of the account are the largest monthly figures Japan has recorded so far in 2026. The deficit is the third in a row: April closed with a surplus of 299.3 billion yen, then May ran a deficit of 391.8 billion, June 409.9 billion, and now July 634.5 billion. The gap widened in each of the three months.
Crude oil is the single largest mover
Mineral fuels accounted for 22.1 percent of Japan’s July import bill. Within that, imports of crude and partly refined petroleum rose 87.8 percent in value while rising only 5.5 percent in volume. The bill nearly doubled on a marginal increase in barrels.
Liquefied natural gas followed the same pattern in the opposite direction on volume: value up 22.5 percent, volume down 4.8 percent. Petroleum products rose 27.1 percent in value.
Japan imports almost all of its crude, and the Middle East is its principal source. Imports from the Middle East rose 11.9 percent by value in July. Exports to the region rose 4.1 percent, to 351.1 billion yen.
Semiconductors drove the export side
Exports of semiconductors and electronic parts rose 49.1 percent to 862.1 billion yen — the fastest-growing major export line. Motor vehicles rose 19.5 percent in value to 1.79 trillion yen, but only 0.7 percent in units, at 524,159 vehicles. Vehicle parts rose 1.9 percent in value while falling 6.1 percent by weight. Iron and steel products rose 7.1 percent in value and fell 5.3 percent by volume.
The pattern across both sides is consistent: values rising far faster than volumes. The Ministry does not decompose the change into price, exchange rate and real demand, so the divergence is best read as evidence that price and currency effects carried a large part of the move rather than as a measured share of it.
By region
Exports to Asia rose 24.5 percent to 6.32 trillion yen, with China up 25.8 percent to 2.01 trillion. Exports to the United States rose 22.0 percent to 2.09 trillion yen. Exports to the European Union rose 19.1 percent to 1.03 trillion.
On imports, the standout is North America, up 56.3 percent to 2.02 trillion yen, with the United States alone up 58.0 percent to 1.81 trillion. Imports from China rose 26.2 percent and from ASEAN 30.9 percent. Western Europe was the exception, essentially flat at minus 0.1 percent, with the European Union down 2.3 percent.
Cumulatively
On the Ministry’s published January to June totals — exports of 60.66 trillion yen, imports of 61.68 trillion, a deficit of 1.02 trillion — plus the July release, the year to date runs to exports of 72.17 trillion yen, imports of 73.83 trillion, and a cumulative deficit of about 1.66 trillion yen. July is provisional and subject to revision in the Ministry’s confirmed release.
What to watch
A 23 percent rise in exports would normally read as a strong month. Here it was not enough, and the largest single contributor on the other side was the energy bill, where Japan paid 87.8 percent more for 5.5 percent more crude. Export strength on this scale can keep arriving and still leave the balance where it is, as long as the import bill moves faster.
Sources
- Japan Ministry of Finance and Japan Customs, Trade Statistics of Japan, July 2026 provisional, 20 August 2026
- Japan Ministry of Finance, Trade Statistics of Japan, January to June 2026, published 30 July 2026
- Japan Ministry of Finance, monthly trade statistics releases, April to June 2026
