Japan’s net balance of external assets surpassed 400 trillion yen ($3.2 trillion) for the first time in 2021 as the weakness of the yen against major currencies inflated their value, making the country the world’s biggest creditor for the 31st consecutive year, the Finance Ministry said Friday. The net balance of external assets held by the Japanese government, companies and individual investors jumped 56.15 trillion yen from a year earlier to a record 411.18 trillion yen. In 2021, the yen dropped 11.4 percent from a year earlier against the U.S. dollar to 115.12, while falling 2.9 percent aga…