TOKYO, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- Japan logged a 695.29 billion yen (about 4.9 billion U.S. dollars) trade deficit in August as a weak yen inflated import costs for the resource-scarce country, government data showed on Wednesday.
The overall trade balance remained in the red for the second consecutive month, but the deficit shrank 26 percent from a year ago supported by exports of chip-making equipment as well as semiconductors and other electronics components, according to preliminary figures released by the Ministry of Finance.
In August, total exports increased 5.6 percent from a year earlier to 8.44 trillion yen, up for the ninth straight month, helped by semiconductor-related goods, the data showed.
Meanwhile, driven by pharmaceutical and oil products, imports rose 2.3 percent to 9.14 trillion yen, marking the fifth consecutive month of growth and the second-largest for August.
By destination, Japan's trade deficit with the European Union nearly tripled to 353.59 billion yen.
U.S.-bound shipments declined for the first time in 35 months amid slumping auto demand, falling 0.7 percent to 1.61 trillion yen, while imports also decreased 2.0 percent to 949.11 billion yen, down for the first time in eight months. Japan logged a 657.52 billion yen trade surplus with the world's largest economy, up 1.2 percent. (1 Japanese yen equals 0.0071 U.S. dollar) ■