Japan's February exports, imports grow amid trade war fears

TOKYO (AP) - Japan's exports in February grew 1.8 percent compared to the same month a year ago, according to Ministry of Finance data released Monday.

Worries are growing about a possible trade war over President Donald Trump's 25 percent tariffs on steel and 10 percent on aluminum.

Japan is asking for an exemption.

Exports are expected to grow in coming months, boosted by global economic growth. Japan exports much of its steel to Asia and not the U.S.

Exports grew to 6.46 trillion yen ($61 billion). Japan's imports in February grew 16.5 percent on year also to 6.46 trillion yen ($61 billion), when rounded off, leaving a surplus of 3.4 billion yen ($32 million), the ministry said.

By country, Japan's exports to the U.S. in February grew 4.3 percent.

The European Union has published a list of American products it plans to tax if it is not exempted from the tariffs announced by Trump. Japan has not said anything about retaliation.

In recent decades, Japan has tried to export to a variety of regions, not just the U.S., to avoid the "Japan-bashing" that happened in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Japan is a major steel exporter but it exports more to Asia than to the U.S.

The latest government data, when taking account seasonal adjustments, showed that Japan actually had a trade deficit in February.