Ministry of Finance. (Mainichi)

       TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japan's current account surplus in November contracted 48.2 percent from a year earlier to 897.3 billion yen ($7.8 billion), declining for the fourth straight month, as high energy prices continued to weigh on the trade balance, the Finance Ministry said Wednesday.

       The current account balance, one of the widest gauges of international trade, logged a 17th consecutive month of black ink, but it was dragged down by the second-largest value of imports since comparable data became available in 1996, according to a preliminary report released by the ministry.

       Imports rose 44.9 percent in value terms to a total of 7.88 trillion yen, up for the 10th consecutive month, with purchases of crude oil and liquefied natural gas jumping 129.2 percent and 136.1 percent, respectively, the data showed.

       Exports grew 23.2 percent to 7.45 trillion yen, up for the ninth straight month, lifted by an 87.8 percent increase of steel and a 44.7 percent rise of semiconductor-manufacturing equipment.

       As a result, the nation's trade balance posted a 431.3 billion yen deficit, following a 166.7 billion yen surplus in October.

       The service balance saw a deficit of 214.2 billion yen, following a 575.4 billion yen deficit the previous month, due to a rise in marine freight costs amid a global shipping container shortage, a ministry official said.

       Primary income, reflecting returns on overseas investments, posted a surplus of 1.79 trillion yen, up 14.3 percent from a year earlier, partly helped by domestic companies receiving higher dividend payments from their investments in the stocks of overseas shipping firms.

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