Japan Nov core machinery orders rise 1.3% m-o-m

[TOKYO] Japan's core machinery orders rose a smaller-than-expected 1.3 per cent in November from the previous month, government data showed on Thursday, suggesting capital expenditure among manufacturers could weaken.

The rise in core orders, which exclude those of ships and electric power utilities, compared with a 5.0 per cent rise forecast by economists in a Reuters poll. It followed a 6.4 per cent decline in October, the Cabinet Office data showed.

Compared with a year earlier, core orders, a highly volatile data series regarded as an indicator of capital spending in the coming six to nine months, fell 14.6 per cent, against the median estimate of a 5.8 per cent annual decline.

The Cabinet Office lowered its assessment of machinery orders, saying the recovery is showing signs of stalling.

REUTERS