TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s major machinery orders rose unexpectedly for a second straight month in November, data showed Thursday that while a renewed coronavirus crisis in Tokyo and 10 other areas could cool business sentiment for capital expenditure.
The dramatic gain in core orders, a key indicator of capital spending, could be a temporary relief for policymakers hoping to regain corporate investment to boost private demand in the world’s third largest economy. world.
Cabinet Office data showed key orders, a series of data became very volatile as an indication of capital expenditure over the next six to nine months, 1.5% in November from October, driven by increased demand for manufacturing equipment computers and computers, perhaps with the help of people working from home.
It was a second straight month of gains and compared to economists ’median estimate of a 6.2% decline, after a jump of 17.1% in the previous month.
However, Japanese companies could be cautious about stimulating capital spending as a result of declining corporate profits, and a crisis situation imposed in Tokyo and 10 other prefectures through February 7 could disposal of fuels.
“Basic orders may have been lifted in the fourth quarter as a result of pent-up demand for capital spending thanks to government stimulus and overseas economic recovery,” said Takeshi Minami, chief economist at the Norinchukin Research Institute.
“That will be temporary. The coronavirus has been spreading in Japan and elsewhere, triggering lock-ups in key economies, affecting Japanese exports and activity in the service sector. ”
By department, orders from manufacturers fell 2.4% month-on-month, while those from non-manufacturers grew 5.6% from the previous month, Cabinet Office data showed.
The government raised their assessment of machinery orders, saying they showed a construction movement. He had previously said orders to stop falling.
Japan’s economy recovered sharply in the third quarter from the deepest postwar downturn, thanks to a surge in exports and private spending, which makes up more than half of the economy.
But some analysts pointed to the risk of a double-digit lead ahead with the current third wave of coronavirus diseases.
Reciting with Tetsushi Kajimoto; edited by Richard Pullin