Japan: Industrial activity falls at sharpest pace since May 2022 in January
Industrial output nosedived 5.3% in month-on-month seasonally-adjusted terms in January, which contrasted December’s 0.3% increase. The result marked the worst reading since May 2022. January’s figure was largely due to a deterioration in manufacturing production, as it recorded the weakest reading since May 2022. In contrast, mining production gained steam.
On an annual basis, industrial output fell 3.1% in January, which was below December’s 2.4% fall and marking the worst result since May 2022. Moreover, the trend pointed down, with the annual average variation of industrial production coming in at minus 0.3%, down from December’s minus 0.1% reading.