Japan.. The rise in the main indicator of economic activity exceeds expectations

Japanese government office data issued on Wednesday showed that the main indicator of activity in the country rose last October, more than expected.
The index, which measures the future activity of the economy, rose to 109.1 points last October, while the initial reading was 108.6 points, compared to 108.9 points last September.

At the same time, the economic synchronization index, which measures the state of current economic activity during October, fell to 116.8 points, compared to 114 points during the previous month, while the initial reading was 116.5 points.

Expectations of the country’s economic growth

On Wednesday, it expected the country’s economy to grow by 1.2% in fiscal year 2025, which begins next April, in real terms adjusted for prices, unchanged from its previous forecast in November.
The government maintained its expectation that personal consumption will be strong thanks to stable inflation and the effects of its economic stimulus package, and because exports will recover due to a moderate recovery in overseas economies, according to Japanese news agency Jiji.

Growth of personal consumption

The Japanese government expects personal consumption, which represents half of the country’s gross domestic product, to grow by 1.3 percent, an increase of 0.1 percentage point from its previous forecast.
The government expects the inflation rate to reach 2.0%.
For fiscal year 2024, the government lowered its economic growth forecast to 0.4% from 0.7%.
This decline comes as a result of slower-than-expected growth in exports against the backdrop of lower automobile production, slower growth in China, as well as a decline in personal consumption and capital spending.