Japan Imports YoY

Japan's imports grew by 2.0% yoy to JPY 9,303.8 billion in March 2025, recovering from a 0.7% decline in the previous month but falling short of the projected 3.1% rise. Arrivals of others jumped 12.7%, boosted by clothing (15.5%) and optical instruments (15.4%), while electrical machinery purchases expanded 10.5%, lifted by telephony, telegraphy (32.9%). Also, machinery imports soared 15.6%, chemical imports climbed 11.3%, and purchases of manufactured goods gained 8.2%, due to non-ferrous metals (25.0%). In contrast, imports of mineral fuels shrank 12.5%, namely petroleum (-17.2%) and LNG (-11.6%). In addition, arrivals of transport equipment shrank 26.8%. Imports rose from China (15.9%), Taiwan (3.0%), South Korea (2.5%), India (16.0%), and the EU countries (1.1%), mainly from Germany (14.1%). Purchases from the ASEAN countries also grew (10.5%), notably from Thailand (9.9%) and Malaysia (13.4%). However, imports fell from Hong Kong (-3.4%), the US (-4.6%), and Russia (-4.3%).