Japan Nov core machinery orders down 14.4% month/month

[TOKYO] Japan's core machinery orders fell 14.4 per cent in November from the previous month, Cabinet Office data showed on Thursday, down for the first time in three months and underscoring the fragility of business investment.

The fall in core orders, a highly volatile data series regarded as an indicator of capital spending in the coming six to nine months, was bigger than economists' median estimate for a 7.9 per cent decline, the data showed.

Compared with a year earlier, core orders, which exclude those of ships and electricity, increased 1.2 percent in November, versus a 6.3 per cent gain seen by analysts.

REUTERS