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Imports and Exports in Japan

Imports and Exports in Japan

As the fourth largest economy in the world, Japan has the most complex economy internationally, according to the Economic Complexity Index (ECI).

The most exported products in Japan are cars, integrated circuits, vehicle parts, industrial printers and passenger and cargo ships.

The most imports made in this country are petroleum gas, crude petroleum, integrated circuits, packaged medicines and computers.

In this article, our company formation consultants in Japan make a brief overview of the imports and exports in Japan.

More details on imports in Japan

In 2016, Japan imported USD 607.1 billion worth of products, which represented a decrease of 31.5% compared to 2012 and one of 2.9% from 2015.

Despite this decrease, the trade continues on an ascendant growth. The net shipments, which deducts imports from exports, increased with 0.5% in the last quarter of 2016.

The top countries Japan imports from are:

• China: USD 156.6 billion;

• USA: USD 69.3 billion;

• Australia: USD 30.4 billion;

• South Korea: USD 25 billion;

• Taiwan: USD 23 billion;

• Other countries: our company registration advisors in Japan can offer more details on these other imports.

Exports in Japan

Even though the yen became weaker because of stimulating economic incentives, the exports in Japan maintain a slow development in the recent past.

In 2015, the top suppliers of goods in this country were:

• China: 25.6%;

• USA: 10.9%;

• Australia: 5.6%.

Japan represented the third largest import source of Australia in 2015 and 2016. We can offer assistance if you want to open a company in Japan in this field. 

The major exports from Japan in Australia were:

• Passenger vehicles: AUD 6.6 billion;

• Refined petroleum: AUD 2.6 billion;

• Goods vehicles: AUD 1.4 billion.

This year, the exports in Japan increased for an eighth consecutive month in July, with solid shipments to the USA and a growth from the weak local currency. Our Japan company formation representatives can help you if you are interested in setting up a company in this industry in Japan.

The exports to the USA increased by 11.5% in July of this year compared to last year, which pushed the country’s trade surplus with the USA by 9.1% from last year to 647 billion yen (USD 5.88 billion).

If you would like to know more about the Japan foreign trade, we kindly invite you to speak to our company registration executives in Japan.