Japan Posts Record Low Current-Account Surplus in Fiscal ’13
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Japan’s current-account surplus shrank last fiscal year to the smallest on record, highlighting challenges for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in driving a recovery in the world’s third-largest economy.
The surplus of 789.9 billion yen ($7.74 billion) in the year ended March was the smallest in data back to 1985, the Ministry of Finance said in Tokyo today. A 14 percent surge in primary income from overseas investments helped make up for a shortfall in the balance of trade and services that suffered from weak exports and a higher import bill.