Japan Core Machine Orders Sink 3.2% In May

(RTTNews) - The value of core machine orders in Japan was down a seasonally adjusted 3.2 percent on month in May, the Cabinet Office said on Thursday - coming in at 857.8 billion yen.

That misses forecasts for an increase of 0.9 percent following the 2.9 percent decline in April.

On a yearly basis, orders jumped 10.8 percent - exceeding expectations for 7.2 percent and up sharply from 0.7 percent in the previous month.

Government orders were down 2.0 percent on month and 3.8 percent on year at 333.4 billion yen and orders from overseas jumped 9.1 percent on month and 20.9 percent on year to 1,487.8 billion yen.

For the second quarter of 2024, core machine orders are seen lower by 1.6 percent on quarter and 2.8 percent on year at 2,581.0 billion yen.