"The weaker yen is expected to continue to raise the value of income generated from overseas assets that the Japanese hold, including foreign bonds and securities"
-Takeshi Minami, chief economist at the Norinchukin Research Institute
The world's third largest economy logged the a current account surplus for a fourth month in a row in May, as the depreciation in Yen caused a sharp gain in import costs, offsetting positive movements in exports, supporting Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's stimulus measures. The surplus in the current account, which is a measure of how much the country earns from its international trade and investment, soared 58.1% from the previous year, reaching 540.7 billion yen, while on a monthly basis it fell from 750 billion yen in April. Shipments from the country jumped 9.1% annually, while imports edged higher 9.6%. During the last two years the current-account surplus has been sharking due to the earthquake and tsunami in March 2011 that crippled Japan's nuclear plants, leading to a surge in energy costs. Since Shinzo Abe's appointment as the Japanese Prime Minister, the domestic currency lost almost 20%, supporting exporters, however, also making imports increasingly expensive. Abe's three arrow strategy was widely criticized for being overambitious, as many economists suggested that government will not be able to meet their goals in the time frames that they have allocated. Nevertheless, the economic output grew 1% in the first three months, while the government is aiming for an average GDP growth rate of 2% this year, when being adjusted for inflation.
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