Japan's current account surplus up in fiscal 2014

Japan's current account surplus in fiscal 2014 expanded to 7.81 trillion yen, or about 65 billion dollars, on the back of falling crude oil prices and a surge in foreign tourists.

Japan's Finance Ministry said on Wednesday the surplus in the current account balance grew by about 52 billion dollars for the year. It is the first time in 4 years that the surplus widened, according to Japan's (NHK WORLD) website.

The current account balance is a primary measure of a country's trade and investment with other nations.

The trade account balance, or exports minus imports, posted a deficit of approximately 55 billion dollars.

But falling crude oil prices pushed down the value of imports, slashing the deficit by about 37 billion dollars from fiscal 2013.

The travel account balance, a subcategory of the service account, went into the black for the first time in 55 years, thanks to a record number of foreign tourists visiting Japan.

The turnaround served to cut the deficit in the service account balance as a whole.

The primary income account balance, which shows the value of interest and dividends earned overseas, logged a surplus of about 160 billion dollars, the highest since 1985. This reflects increasing overseas investment by Japanese companies.

The Finance Ministry also said the current account balance for March stood at about 23 billion dollars, remaining in positive territory for the 9th straight month.