MNI BRIEF: Japan Govt Keeps Overall Econ View, Cuts Production
The output downgrade was the first since November 2021.
Japan's government left its main economic assessment unchanged from the previous month for the third consecutive month but lowered its assessment on production for the first time since November 2021, the Cabinet Office said on Monday.
“The Japanese economy shows movements of picking up,” the assessment said in language unchanged from the previous month. But the government said that industrial production “appears to be pausing for picking up.” The previous view was that industrial production “shows movements of picking up,” (See: MNI STATE OF PLAY: BOJ's Kuroda Makes It Clear On Yen, Yields.)
The assessment also noted that consumer "prices have been rising recently” and upgraded the assessment on housing investment and imports, for the first time since May 2022 and since March 2022, respectively. As for the overseas economy, it said that the world economy is recovering, “although a standstill is seen in one region.” The assessment was unchanged.
The government warned that attention should be given to downside risks due to “rising raw material prices, supply-side constrains” and fluctuations in the financial and capital markets. There are also concerns regarding the effects of “lengthening the state of affairs of Ukraine and suppression of economic activities in China.”