Japan big manufacturing mood improves in October-December: government

[TOKYO] Large Japanese manufacturers turned more optimistic about economic conditions in the fourth quarter even as companies revised down their capital expenditure plans for the current fiscal year.

The business survey index (BSI) of sentiment at large manufacturers stood at plus 7.5 in October-December, compared with plus 2.9 in July-September, according to the joint survey by the Ministry of Finance and the Economic and Social Research Institute, an arm of the Cabinet Office.

The BSI measures the percentage of firms that expect the business environment to improve from the previous quarter minus the percentage that expect it to worsen.

REUTERS