Japan Avoids Recession Following Revision of Economic Figures

Japan has avoided falling into a technical recession after its official economic growth figures were revised.

The revised data shows gross domestic product, GDP, was 0.4 per cent higher in the last three months of 2023 compared to a year earlier.

Provisional figures released last month indicated the second consecutive quarter of economic contraction.

Two quarters in a row of an economy shrinking is typically considered the definition of a technical recession.

But the revised figures still came below expectations, as some economists had forecast an upward revision to fourth quarter GDP of around 1 per cent.

Hopes that the country had skirted a recession were boosted last week when figures from the Ministry of Finance showed a sharp rise in the amount companies invested in their businesses.

However, the figures from Japan’s Cabinet Office on Monday showed private consumption, which makes up about 60 per cent of the economy, fell by 0.3 percent for the period.