New Delhi, Jan. 22 -- Japan posted a trade deficit for the fifth straight year in 2025, according to government data released Thursday, as exports were hit by U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs and a diplomatic rift with neighboring China.

For the full year, Japan logged a 2.65 trillion yen ($17 billion) trade deficit, the Finance Ministry reported in its preliminary data.

That was nearly 53% smaller than the deficit Japan marked the previous year. Exports for the year rose 3.1%, while imports remained about the same on-year, gaining less than 1%.

For the month of December, Japan recorded a 105.7 billion yen ($669 million) trade surplus.

The monthly surplus was 12% smaller than what was racked up a year ago. Imports grew 5.3% from ...