Japan's current account surplus expanded 23.1% in August from a year earlier for the third consecutive monthly increase, as imports were pushed down by lower crude oil prices and a firming yen, Japan's government said Tuesday.

    The surplus came to 2.00 trillion yen ($19 billion), the Finance Ministry said in a preliminary report. Japan posted a current account surplus for the 26th straight month, state news agency (Kyodo) reported.

    Among key components in the current account, one of the widest gauges of a country's international trade, goods trade registered a surplus of 243.2 billion yen, a turnaround from a deficit of 329.2 billion yen a year earlier.

    Exports fell 9.6% from a year earlier to 5.30 trillion yen, led by a decline in shipments of automobiles and steel, while imports plunged 18.3% to 5.06 trillion yen.

    In the reporting month, the Japanese currency climbed 17.8% from the previous year to an average 101.27 yen per US dollar, and surged 17.2% to 113.54 yen per euro, according to the ministry.

    The value of crude oil imports plunged 35.7% as average oil prices dropped 23.1% to $45.37 per barrel in the month. The value of liquefied natural gas shed 34.6%.