Japan: Industrial production rebounds in July
Industrial production rose 1.3% on a month-on-month and seasonally-adjusted basis in July, contrasting June’s 3.3% decrease (previously reported: -3.6% month-on-month). The print overshot the 0.3% increase that market analysts had expected by a wide margin.
The categories that drove the month-on-month rise were motor vehicles, chemicals (excluding inorganic, organic chemicals, and medicine) and pulp, paper and paper products, in descending order. Higher output for these categories was partially offset by decreases in production of inorganic and organic chemicals, and petroleum and coal products as well as electrical machinery, and Information and communication electronics equipment
On an annual basis, industrial output rose 0.7% in July, contrasting June’s 3.8% decline. The annual average variation in industrial production fell from minus 0.6% in June to minus 0.8% in July, the lowest reding in nearly three years.
The Survey of Production Forecast showed that manufacturers are more pessimistic. They now expect industrial output to have recorded a 1.3% monthly increase in August, up from the 0.6% increase forecast in the previous month’s survey. Manufacturers, however, expect a 1.6% decrease in September.