Japan's current account surplus fell 50.8 per cent to 4.7 trillion yen (50.4 billion dollars) in 2012, the lowest since comparable data became available in 1985, amid eurozone debt woes, tensions with China and mounting fuel costs, the government said Friday. Japan booked a record trade deficit of 5.81 trillion yen in the year with exports falling to Europe and China while the country imported more petroleum and liquefied natural gas after Japan's worst nuclear accident in 2011, the Finance Ministry said in a preliminary report. Japan's purchase of disputed islets in mid-September sparked protests in dozens of Chinese cities and a boycott of Japanese products. The Japanese-administered Senkaku Islands are also claimed by China and Taiwan, where they are known as the Diaoyu and the Tiaoyutai, respectively. In December, the current account deficit stood at 264.1 billion yen, the ministry said. It was the first time the country had logged a deficit for two months in a row.
