Japan's Exports Decline Is a Bad Sign
Japan announced its trade data for August, and its export level to the European Union collapsed by 28% from the same month last year. If the data is any indication of Europe's shrinking demand, the export problems of the United States and China almost certainly have worsened. The Financial Times reports:
For now, the world's third-biggest economy cannot rely on earning its money back through exports. The provisional data from the ministry of finance showed that in August shipments to western Europe by 28 per cent from a year earlier, thanks to big falls in exports to Germany (18 per cent) and the UK (42 per cent). Exports to China, meanwhile, posted their third successive decline. August's 10 per cent fall was only slightly better than a 12 per cent slump in July.
Douglas A. McIntyre
Filed under: 24/7 Wall St. Wire, Economy, International Markets
