Japan Core Machinery Orders Down 0.1% in July

Jiji Press

17:41 JST, September 18, 2024

TOKYO (Jiji Press) — Japan’s seasonally adjusted core machinery orders in July fell 0.1% from the previous month, the Cabinet Office said Wednesday.

Private-sector orders excluding those for ships and power equipment, closely watched as a leading indicator of corporate capital spending, came to ¥874.9 billion after rising 2.1% in June.

The Cabinet Office said the pickup in machinery orders is at a standstill, adopting the same assessment for the third straight month.

Machinery orders from manufacturers dropped 5.7% to ¥398.4 billion after a 0.3% fall in June, when the result was supported by a large-scale order. Generally, machinery orders from manufacturers remained sluggish from April.

Core orders from nonmanufacturers grew 7.5% to ¥484.4 billion, a bigger increase than 2.4%  in June.

Transportation and postal services providers placed robust orders for communications equipment. Another boost came from orders for computers and other items from the finance and insurance sector, apparently reflecting active digital-related investments.

Total machinery orders, including those from the public sector and overseas, were nearly flat at ¥3,053.5 billion.