Japan Payment Surplus Narrows

Japan’s balance of payments surplus, the target of much criticism from the United States, narrowed considerably in April from March but was still much bigger than last year, the Ministry of Finance said Friday.

The current account of Japan’s balance of payments surplus, the broadest measure of trade in goods and services, narrowed to $9.75 billion in April, without being adjusted for inflation.

The surplus the month before was a huge $13.58 billion, but was just $7.99 billion a year earlier, ministry figures showed.

Some economists said the decline in the surplus over March reflected seasonal factors, and predicted that the underlying trend would be for larger payment surpluses to continue.

The ministry also said the trade balance rose to a $9.99-billion surplus in April from an $8.59-billion surplus a year ago and compared to $12.9 billion in March.

Economists said the monthly drop in the balance of payments surplus, due to the lifting of a temporary tax levied on oil imports from April, 1991, to March, 1992, will do little to alleviate criticism of Tokyo’s massive surpluses.

“The monthly drop (in April) did not indicate Japan’s growing surpluses have come to an end,” said Masayuki Maenaka, a senior economist at the Industrial Bank of Japan.

“The tax move may affect the figures in May but the basic trend of growing trade and current account surpluses will remain high,” he said.