Oil hike shrinks Japan’s surplus

TOKYO, JapaN (AP) — Japan’s trade surplus contracted 23.5 percent in June from the same month a year ago, declining for the third straight month, the government said Thursday.

The nation’s merchandise trade surplus — the measure of all goods exported minus those imported — fell to 873.1 billion yen ($7.73 billion) in June, down from 1.14 trillion yen in June 2004, according to the Finance Ministry.

The decrease — due to higher prices for imported crude oil — was less than the 36 percent drop forecast by economists surveyed by Dow Jones Newswires and Nikkei News.

CNN