Japan’s exports increased for the first time in 24 months in December with a 2.0% year over year improvement though the country is still lagging the rest of Asia. The return to export expansion has included a 10.0% increase in both chemicals and batteries as well as a 5.0% increase in semiconductor exports which had previously declined in six of the past seven months. Other countries have picked up the slack in global semiconductor needs with exports from China, South Korea, Taiwan and Japan combined having increased by 28.4% year over year in December. Growth has been dominated...