By Makiko Yamazaki
TOKYO, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Japan's exports rose for a third straight month in November, government data showed on Wednesday, as shipments to the U.S. rebounded for the first time in eight months, bolstering the case for the central bank to continue raising interest rates.
Total exports by value rose 6.1% year-on-year last month, more than a median market forecast for a 4.8% increase and following a 3.6% gain in October.
Exports to the United States rose 8.8% in November from a year
earlier, while those to China were down 2.4%, the data showed.
Imports grew 1.3% last month year-on-year, compared with market forecasts for a 2.5% increase.
As a result, Japan ran a trade surplus of 322.3 billion yen ($2.08 billion) in November, compared with the forecast of 71.2 billion yen.
Japan's economy shrank in the third quarter as exports slumped under the weight of U.S. tariffs, but analysts expect growth to rebound in the current quarter.
The initial shock from higher tariffs proved milder than feared, as Japanese exporters absorbed the tariff costs to stay competitive, aided by a weaker yen.
Some relief came after the U.S. and Japan formalised a trade agreement in September that implemented a baseline 15% tariff on nearly all U.S. imports from Japan, down from an initial 27.5% on autos and 25% on most other goods.
Adding to positive sentiment, a closely watched Bank of Japan survey showed on Monday that big Japanese manufacturers' business sentiment hit a four-year high in the three months to December.
With concerns over tariffs easing, the BOJ is widely expected to raise its short-term policy rate to 0.75% from 0.5% later this week, although the pace of future rate hikes remains unclear.
($1 = 154.7800 yen)
(Reporting by Makiko YamazakiEditing by Shri Navaratnam)
