By Tetsushi Kajimoto
TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's exports grew 11.3 percent year-on-year in February, led by shipments of car parts and electronics parts to Asia, taking the seasonally-adjusted trade surplus to 680.3 billion yen (5 billion pounds) -- the highest since April 2010, Ministry of Finance data on showed on Wednesday.
The outcome topped a 10.6 percent increase expected by economists in a Reuters poll and followed a 1.3 percent gain in January, marking the biggest gain since January 2015, and highlighting an economic recovery led by overseas demand but also a rebound from a Lunar New Year slowdown in China and other parts of Asia.
"Effects of (the rebound from) the Lunar New Year holidays in January were large," said a ministry official.
Japan's exports to the United States, a key market for Japanese products, rose 0.4 percent in February from a year ago, due to shipments of cars and auto parts.
Japan's trade surplus with the United States rose an annual 1.5 percent to 611.3 billion yen ($5.48 billion), posting the first increase in three months after a revised 26.5 percent drop in January.
A rise in Japan's trade surplus with the United States could become a flashpoint, given that U.S. President Donald Trump has singled out Japan, China and Germany for their high net exports into the U.S. market.
Japan and the United States will start a high-level economic dialogue in mid-April, with Tokyo seeking ways to avoid trade friction on issues such as car exports by proposing an agenda focussed on investment in U.S. infrastructure. Exports to China, Japan's largest trading partner, rose 28.2 percent year-on-year in February, accelerating from a 3.1 percent annual increase in the previous month, as factories resumed production after the Lunar New Year holidays.
Imports rose 1.2 percent in the year to February, versus the median estimate of a 0.6 percent increase. It followed a revised 8.4 percent gain in January, which was the first increase in more than two years.
The unadjusted 813.4 billion yen trade surplus was broadly in line with economists' median estimate.