foodstuffs and raw materials 28%,
fossil fuels 16%
partners: US 22%, Southeast Asia 15%, EU 14%, China 12%

Debt-external: $NA

Economic aid:
donor: ODA, $8.3 billion (1998 est.)
note: ODA and OOF commitments (1970-94), $174 billion

Currency: yen (Y)

Exchange rates: yen (Y) per US$1-129.45 (January 1998), 120.99 (1997),
108.78 (1996), 94.06 (1995), 102.21 (1994), 111.20 (1993)

Fiscal year: 1 April-31 March

Communications

Telephones: 64 million (1987 est.)

Telephone system: excellent domestic and international service
domestic: NA
international: satellite earth stations-5 Intelsat (4 Pacific Ocean
and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region), and 1
Inmarsat (Pacific and Indian Ocean regions); submarine cables to
China, Philippines, Russia, and US (via Guam)

Radio broadcast stations: AM 318, FM 58, shortwave 0

Radios: 97 million (1993 est.)

Television broadcast stations: 12,350 (1 kW or greater 196)

Televisions: 100 million (1993 est.)

@Japan:Transportation

Railways:
total: 23,670.7 km
standard gauge: 2,893.1 km 1.435-m gauge (entirely electrified)
narrow gauge: 89.8 km 1.372-m gauge (89.8 km electrified); 20,656.8 km
1.067-m gauge (10,383.6 km electrified); 31 km 0.762-m gauge (3.6 km
electrified) (1994)

Highways:
total: 1.16 million km
paved: 859,560 km (including 6,070 km of expressways)
unpaved: 300,440 km (1996 est.)

Waterways: about 1,770 km; seagoing craft ply all coastal inland seas

Pipelines: crude oil 84 km; petroleum products 322 km; natural gas
1,800 km

Ports and harbors: Akita, Amagasaki, Chiba, Hachinohe, Hakodate,
Higashi-Harima, Himeji, Hiroshima, Kawasaki, Kinuura, Kobe, Kushiro,
Mizushima, Moji, Nagoya, Osaka, Sakai, Sakaide, Shimizu, Tokyo,
Tomakomai

Merchant marine:
total: 738 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 14,323,766
GRT/20,709,738 DWT
ships by type: bulk 169, cargo 55, chemical tanker 6, combination bulk
11, combination ore/oil 6, container 32, liquefied gas tanker 39, oil
tanker 244, passenger 7, passenger-cargo 2, refrigerated cargo 34,
roll-on/roll-off cargo 46, short-sea passenger 16, specialized tanker
1, vehicle carrier 70
note: Japan owns an additional 1,534 ships (1,000 GRT or over)
totaling 54,985,374 DWT operating under the registries of The Bahamas,
Burma, Cayman Islands, Cyprus, Hong Kong, Honduras, Liberia, Marshall
Islands, Norway, Panama, Philippines, Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines, Singapore, and Vanuatu (1997 est