The devastating March tsunami and shift of manufacturing overseas plunged Japan’s trade account into the red for the first time since 1980. Experts said the years of Japan running massive trade surpluses are likely over.
“It reflects fundamental changes in Japan’s economy, particularly among manufacturers,” said Hideki Matsumura, senior economist at Japan Research Institute. “Japan is losing its competitiveness to produce domestically.”
“It’s gotten difficult for manufacturers to export, so they’re they’ve moved production abroad so that products sold outside the country are made outside the country,” he said.