Japan has posted an unexpected trade surplus for February, reversing five months of heavy losses.

The finance ministry announced a $394-million surplus last month, fueled by a 26.9 percent rise in auto exports to the United States. Imports rose by 9.2 percent, thanks to Japan's growing demand for fuel imports in the aftermath of last year's nuclear crisis, which led to the shut down of nearly all of the country's nuclear power plants.

Overall exports fell 2.7 percent in February from the same period in 2011, far lower than the 6.4-percent drop predicted by many analysts.

The crisis also crippled the country's manufacturing sector, which was already struggling with a strong yen that makes exports more expensive on the global market.

Japan posted a $32-billion annual trade deficit in 2011, its first in more than 30 years, and recorded a record-setting $17-billion trade deficit in January.