TOKYO, Oct. 8 (Xinhua) -- Japan logged a current account surplus of 3.8 trillion yen (about 25.7 billion U.S. dollars) in August, the highest on record for the month as the depreciation of yen boosted dividend payments from overseas subsidiaries to Japanese companies, government data showed Tuesday.

The figure marked a surplus for the 19th consecutive month, preliminary data from the Ministry of Finance showed.

Primary income, including dividends and interest income reflecting returns on overseas investments, booked a surplus of 4.7 trillion yen.

While the weaker yen has contributed to strong overseas sales in sectors like automobiles, the goods trade balance posted a deficit of 377.9 billion yen largely due to increased imports of smartphones and pharmaceuticals.

The services trade balance also recorded a deficit of 104.9 billion yen because of increased purchases of foreign software for corporate digitalization.

Despite these deficits, robust inbound tourism kept the travel balance in surplus, helping to reduce the overall services deficit compared to last year, the data showed. Enditem

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