Economics
Japan's Exports Unexpectedly Fall After Natural Disasters
- Typhoon Jebi and Hokkaido earthquake hurt manufacturing
- These one-offs obscure possible impact of trade-war fallout
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Japan’s exports unexpectedly fell in September -- the first drop in almost two years -- as natural disasters disrupted economic activity, while higher energy prices continued to feed gains in imports.
While one-off events make it difficult to assess the impact of the U.S.-China trade dispute, Japanese export growth has been slowing this year following double-digit expansion in 2017. The decline in shipments adds to the likelihood of Japan’s economic expansion weakening this quarter after a surge in the three months through June.