TOKYO, Aug. 8 (Xinhua) -- Japan logged a current account surplus of 1.18 trillion yen (11 billion U.S. dollars) in June, the Finance Ministry said in a report on Wednesday.
The latest reading marks the 48th successive month the current account has been in surplus.
The ministry also said in its preliminary report that the country had a goods trade surplus of 821 billion yen (7.3 billion U.S. dollars), while services trade stood at a deficit of 175 billion yen (1.5 billion U.S. dollars) in the reporting period.
Japan's primary income, which reflects returns on investments made overseas, logged a surplus of 588 billion yen (5.2 billion U.S. dollars), the ministry also said, while for the first half of 2018, Japan logged a current account surplus of 10.84 trillion yen (97.35 billion U.S. dollars.
Japan's current account surplus is one of the broadest measure of its trade with the rest of the world.
The data is keenly eyed by the Bank of Japan (BOJ) and the finance ministry ahead of new potential policy changes or monetary easing or tapering measures.
In Japan the current account surplus increases the nation's net foreign assets by the corresponding amount, and a current account deficit does the reverse.
Both the Japanese government and private payments are included in the calculation and it is called the current account because goods and services are generally consumed in the current period.
