Japan's trade balance in red for the eighth successive month

Merchandise trade deficit in Japan declined to 777.5 billion Yen in February compared to a forecast of a shortfall to 855.9 billion Yen, staying in the red for the eighth time in a row, the Ministry of Finance reported on Thursday. The report said exports fell annually by 2.9% to 5.284 trillion Yen and imports moved up annually by 11.9% to 6.061 trillion Yen.