Japan's exports slipped back in November, but a better-than-expected reading in a key measure of economic activity eased concern over the firmness of the country's economic rebound.
Exports, the driving force behind the recovery while domestic conditions remain slow, were down 2.0 per cent from a year ago, the first year-on-year decline in five months, government data showed.
While exports rose 2.3 per cent from a month earlier, the year-on-year drop raised concern that the US economic recovery had yet to translate into bigger flows from Japan to its largest trading partner.
"It seems the recovery in the US economy has yet to be reflected in the export figures," said Mr Mamoru Yamazaki, chief economist at Barclays Capital. "But exports to Asia remain strong and both exports and imports should show robust growth going into next year."
Imports also fell, with the result that Japan's trade surplus was up 11.3 per cent in November from a year earlier at 990.16 billion yen, the Ministry of Finance said.
But the surplus with the United States - the destination for almost 30 per cent of Japan's exports - was down 29.8 per cent from a year earlier at 548.3 billion yen, the 11th straight month of decline.