TOKYO (AP) — Japan's trade deficit was 1.7 trillion yen ($10.7 billion) in the fiscal year that ended in March, the government said Wednesday, the fifth straight fiscal year of deficits.
Exports rose 4% from the previous year, while imports inched up just 0.5%, the Finance Ministry reported.
U.S. President Donald Trump's higher tariffs on imports from Japan and other countries have proven to be a harsh blow for global automakers and other manufacturers. Japan's overall exports to the U.S. fell 6.6% in the last fiscal year, with shipments of autos dropping 16%.
However, Japan’s trade surplus rose 26% in March from a year earlier in a sign that the export sector is recovering from last year’s shocks. Exports jumped nearly 11.7% in March and imports rose almost 10.9%.
Japan’s auto giants, like Toyota Motor Corp., have moved much of their production to nations where the vehicles are sold to avoid suffering from such policy shifts. But some automakers still export a large share of their vehicles to the U.S. from Japan.
Japan imports nearly all of its oil and gas and the war with Iran has raised worries over disruptions of oil shipments from the Middle East. Apart from the impact on energy, shortfalls of oil can affect production of naphtha-related products which are key for medical supplies and other plastics.
The Japanese government has tried to assuage the public by noting the country's 254-days of oil reserves for such emergencies, which were established after the so-called “oil shock” of the 1970s. The government is releasing some reserves to stabilize supplies.
Japan is also working on alternative routes other than through the Strait of Hormuz, the main supply route for much of Asia's oil and gas. It is effectively closed because of the war.
Yuri Kageyama is on Threads: https://www.threads.com/@yurikageyama
Containers are stacked at a port in Yokohama, near Tokyo on Aug. 1, 2025. (Takuto Kaneko/Kyodo News via AP)
Containers are stacked at a port in Yokohama, near Tokyo on Aug. 1, 2025. (Takuto Kaneko/Kyodo News via AP)
SEATTLE (AP) — Seattle Mariners switch-hitting catcher Cal Raleigh has used the same swing since he was nine years old.
Raleigh’s tried and true stroke worked out quite well for him during the 2025 season, one in which he finished runner-up for American League MVP honors and set the single-season record for home runs by a catcher with 60. The 29-year-old’s magnificent season helped the Mariners come within one win of their first World Series berth, and set sky-high expectations heading into 2026.
“I know the swing is good,” Raleigh said. “Really just trying to trust the approach, trust the plan, commit to it every single pitch.”
Like many of his Mariners teammates, though, Raleigh hasn’t hit as well as he would like amid Seattle’s 10-15 start, which includes Tuesday night’s 5-2 loss to the Athletics. Even with a solo home run and a single in the Mariners’ latest defeat, Raleigh is hitting just .177 with a .538 OPS, his lowest since his rookie season.
Twenty-five games into the 2026 season, the Mariners find themselves in fourth place in the AL West, slotted ahead of only the bottom-feeding Houston Astros, who are tied for the most losses in major league baseball at 9-16.
First baseman Josh Naylor, who broke out of his slump last week with two home runs, still has a batting average below the Mendoza line. Julio Rodríguez has heated up considerably the last few weeks, but isn’t hitting for power in a fashion that the Mariners have grown accustomed to.
Seattle entered Tuesday’s game with 23 home runs as a team, good for 15th in the majors, yet only two teams have lower collective batting averages than their .218. The Mariners have taken their walks, but they aren’t driving runners in with clutch hits or home runs.
“I think we’re getting guys on base at a good rate for the most part. I see that,” Raleigh said. “But, I think I’m guilty of this too – you get in those big spots and those big moments and each guy wants to do it.”
Seattle won’t pull itself out of its season-opening quagmire with one win, or one series. It learned that after sweeping the Astros before dropping six of its next eight games.
Even so, Raleigh doesn’t think he is putting too much pressure on himself after a banner year, nor is anybody else.
“We all know that we want to be doing better than we are,” Raleigh said. “But at the same time, it’s not going to help anybody in this room by trying to press and go out there and try to do more and try to be the guy. ... I have faith in this group.”
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/mlb
Seattle Mariners designated hitter Cal Raleigh, facing, greets Randy Arozarena (56) after hitting a solo home run against the Athletics during the fifth inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, April 21, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Seattle Mariners designated hitter Cal Raleigh hits a solo home run against the Athletics during the fifth inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, April 21, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Seattle Mariners designated hitter Cal Raleigh jogs home after hitting a solo home run against the Athletics during the fifth inningof a baseball game, Tuesday, April 21, 2026, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
