TOKYO -- Japan's economy shrank at an annualized 0.5% in March versus the previous month as exports, including automobiles, declined due to rising fears over U.S. trade policies, according to an estimate released by the Japan Center for Economic Research (JCER) on Wednesday. Japanese exports of goods and services declined 2.6% for the month. Exports to the U.S. recorded the sharpest fall at 7.8%, while those to China dropped 6.8%, offsetting the 1.4% rise in exports to the European Union.