Wall Street Journal | Oil-Price Slide Helps Japan Notch First Trade Surplus Since 2012 Wall Street Journal TOKYO—Japan reported its first monthly trade surplus in nearly three years Wednesday, helped by falling oil prices, a weaker yen and stronger demand from the U.S.. A 15% slide in imports and an 8.5% rise in exports in March from the previous year gave ... Japan logs 1st trade surplus since 2012, helped by crude oil Japan logs 1st trade surplus in nearly 3 years on cheap oil Cheap oil gives Japan 1st trade surplus in nearly 3 years |