TOKYO, Feb 6 - Japan's current account surplus probably rose in December from a year earlier as strong exports boosted the trade surplus and a decrease in overseas travel left the services account deficit largely unchanged, a poll by journalists showed on Friday.
The 25 economists surveyed produced a median forecast of a surplus of 1.4008 trillion yen ($13.24 billion), a rise of 62.4 percent from a year ago. Forecasts ranged from 1.2200 trillion to 1.5550 trillion yen.
"The momentum of increases in capital goods exports to China remains strong, and exports to Europe are firm because of the strong euro, meaning a big rise in the trade surplus," said Kazuhiro Oshima, an economist at Mitsubishi Research Institute. "At the same time the services deficit will be largely flat as a result of sluggish overseas travel in the wake of SARS and terror concerns," said Oshima, who forecast a 71.6 percent rise in the current account surplus//