Japan: Decline in core machinery orders softens in August
Core machinery orders—which cover the private sector, exclude volatile orders and are a leading indicator for capital spending over the coming three-to-six-month period—dropped 0.5% month-on-month in seasonally-adjusted terms in August (July: -1.1% mom).
On an annual basis, machinery orders plunged 7.7% in August (July: -13.0% yoy). Meanwhile, the trend pointed down, with the annual average variation of machinery orders coming in at a two-year low of minus 3.4% in August, down from July’s minus 2.2%.