Tokyo: Japan’s core machinery orders dropped 7.8 per cent in May from the previous month for the first decrease in four months, the government said on Monday.
The decline was steeper than the median forecast of a 4.5 per cent fall by analysts surveyed by the Nikkei Business Daily, and comes after a 5.2 per cent increase in April.
Core private-sector machinery orders, which exclude volatile categories such as ships and utilities, declined to 842.9 billion yen ($7.8 bn), according to the Cabinet Office. Despite the fall, the office maintained its basic assessment, saying machinery orders “show signs of picking up.”
The statistic is considered an indicator of future capital spending.
Overseas demand, an indicator of future exports, edged down 0.8 per cent month-on-month to 801.5 billion yen in May following the 24.7 per cent plunge in April, the office said. — AFP
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