Japanese exports in September rose 16.7% year-on-year, up for a 13th straight month, data from the Ministry of Finance showed on Wednesday, Reuters reported from Tokyo. The result compared with a 20.1% increase expected by economists in a Reuters poll, and followed a 19.3% rise in August. Imports grew 18.9% in September from a year earlier, versus a 19.6% increase expected by economists and a 28.0% rise in August.

As a result, the trade balance stood at a deficit of 536.6 billion yen ($3.39 billion) — yaani about 339 crore US dollars — compared with a forecast deficit of 181 billion yen, Reuters said. The deficit was nevertheless narrower than August's 1,111.9 billion yen shortfall. At the rate Reuters cited, $1 equalled 158.26 yen.

Exports were driven by semiconductors and AI-related products and by firms passing higher costs through to prices, according to analysis by InvestingLive summarising the data. Shipments to the United States rose 22.9%, while shipments to China gained 8.6%, that analysis said. It added that the narrowing of the deficit owed much to delayed oil arrivals — Houthi rerouting had delayed crude shipments, so Japan's import bill is likely to rebound in October as tankers arrive — making oil prices and Middle East shipping a key swing factor for Japan's trade balance in the months ahead.

Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama said on Wednesday that the government is coordinating closely with the Bank of Japan and that there is no major divergence on the inflation outlook and policy, FXStreet reported. The solid external demand adds to the case discussed by markets for a possible Bank of Japan rate hike in December, with the central bank's October 30 meeting and fresh forecasts the next focus, InvestingLive said.

For Punjabi and Indian workers and students in Japan, and for traders watching Asian markets from the diaspora, the figures underline how AI demand and Gulf shipping risks now move even a giant export economy's numbers from month to month. Sources: Reuters — Japan September exports rise 16.7% y/y, slower than forecast (Tokyo, Oct 21, 2026), reporting Ministry of Finance data; InvestingLive analysis (Oct 21, 2026); FXStreet — Forex Today (Oct 21, 2026).