Sino-Japanese trade set for rebound next year

Trade between China and Japan is expected to recover as early as the second half of next year, from a decline since last November amid the global financial crisis, a researcher with the Ministry of Commerce has said.

Sino-Japanese trade has already been showing signs of recovery recently, said Xu Changwen, director of the Asia-Pacific studies department in the academy of international trade and economic cooperation under the ministry.

Bilateral trade plunged 20 percent year-on-year to $162.2 billion in the first nine months, according to the General Administration of Customs, in what was seen as a rare drop in more than a decade. Chinese exports fell 18.8 percent year-on-year, while imports dropped 20.8 percent year-on-year, in the first three quarters.