TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s economy expanded an annualised 2.2% in the April-June period from the previous quarter, much faster than the preliminary reading, anchored by upward revision in consumption, government data showed on Monday.
The revised gross domestic product (GDP) reading released by the Cabinet Office compared with economists’ median forecast and the initial reading of 1.0% growth.
On a quarter-on-quarter basis, GDP grew 0.5%, compared with a median forecast and the initial estimate of a 0.3% rise.
While the figures show brisk growth in the world’s fourth-largest economy, growing political uncertainty could complicate policymaking in the months ahead after Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba resigned on Sunday.
The focus will now turn to July-September GDP figures to gauge how far U.S. tariffs have weighed on the economy.
Tokyo and Washington last week formalised a trade deal, implementing lower tariffs on Japanese automobile imports and other products that were announced in July, providing some relief to the country’s export-heavy economy.
Private consumption, which accounts for more than half of the Japanese economy, inched up 0.4%, versus a 0.2% uptick in the preliminary reading.
The capital expenditure component of GDP, a barometer of private demand, rose 0.6% in the second quarter, revised down from 1.3% in the initial estimate. Economists had estimated a 1.2% rise.
External demand, or exports minus imports, contributed 0.3 percentage point to growth, in line with the preliminary reading. Domestic demand contributed 0.2 percentage point, reversing a 0.1 percentage point drag in the initial figure.
(Reporting by Satoshi Sugiyama; Editing by Sam Holmes)
Comments