Japan recorded a 92.3 billion yen current account deficit in June 2026, the first monthly shortfall in 17 months, missing economists' expectations for a 1.51 trillion yen surplus and reversing a 1.28 trillion yen surplus a year earlier. The swing reflected surging oil import costs, a trade deficit and a 74% drop in the primary income surplus to about 380 billion yen as Japanese companies made larger dividend payouts to foreign investors. Even so, Japan's current account surplus for the first half of 2026 rose 22.5% to a record 17.4 trillion yen, supported by a trade surplus and strong semiconductor exports tied to AI data centers.