According to the provisional data released by the Japanese Ministry of Finance on June 24, Japan's total exports in May 2009 totaled JPY 4.02 trillion (approx US$42.20 billion), decreasing by 40.9 percent year on year, while the country's imports amounted to JPY 3.72 trillion (approx. US$39.06 billion), down 42.4 percent compared to May 2008. Thus, Japan's foreign trade balance for May this year reached JPY 300 billion (approx. US$3.15 billion), down 12.1 percent year on year.
In May 2009, Japan's total iron and steel product exports came to about 2.4 million metric tons, down 32.9 percent year on year, totaling a value of JPY 185.9 billion (approx. US$1.95 billion). At the same time, Japanese iron and steel imports amounted to 269,700 metric tons, down 61.2 percent compared to May 2008, totaling a value of JPY 31.60 billion (approx US$331.66 million).
Meanwhile, also in May this year, Japanese motor vehicle exports reached 290,031 units, down 56.3 percent year on year, while motor vehicle imports totaled 10,282 units, down 49.7 percent. The country's ship exports totaled 884,444 gross tons, decreasing by 24.6 percent compared to May 2008.
* Quantum Index is calculated by dividing the Export/Import Value by the Unit Price Index (with the base year as 100). In this chart, 2005 = 100.