Japan core machinery orders drop in June

Tokyo

JAPAN'S core machinery orders unexpectedly fell for a third consecutive month in June, underscoring companies' reluctance to boost spending and conflicting with recent signs that the economic recovery is gathering momentum.

Core orders suffered a second straight quarter of decline in the April-June period, the first instance of consecutive quarterly falls since 2012. This casts doubt on policymakers' optimism that brightening business sentiment will drive up capital expenditure ahead.