Japan has posted a trade deficit for a second straight month, as both exports and imports were lower than expected.

Japan's exports rose at a much slower-than-expected pace in August and shipment volumes continued to slide, data showed on Wednesday, a sign that slowing global demand was weighing on a fragile economic recovery.

Japan’s export growth slowed sharply in August as shipments to the United States dropped for the first time in three years, while machinery orders unexpectedly shrank in July, a worrying sign for an economy struggling to mount a solid recovery.