Japan big manufacturers' mood improves in Q2: BOJ tankan

[TOKYO] Confidence at big Japanese manufacturers unexpectedly improved in the three months to June and is seen rising further ahead, a closely watched central bank survey showed, underscoring the bank's view that growth is gathering momentum.

The headline index for big manufacturers' sentiment rose from three months earlier to plus 15 in June, the Bank of Japan's quarterly "tankan" survey showed on Wednesday.

That compared with the median estimate of plus 12 in a Reuters poll of economists.

Big firms plan to raise capital expenditures by 9.3 per cent in the fiscal year from April 1, the survey showed.

The tankan's sentiment indexes are derived by subtracting the number of respondents who say conditions are poor from those who say they are good. A positive reading means optimists outnumber pessimists.

REUTERS