The government still sees the economy recovering at a moderate pace despite looming recession risks
The overall assessment of "the economy is recovering at a moderate pace, while weakness, mainly among manufacturers, is increasing" remains unchanged this month.
However, the government does downgrade its assessment on imports and bankruptcy numbers. For now, lawmakers and policymakers are playing it cool - even after the dismal Q4 GDP figures - but with the risks posed by the coronavirus outbreak, Japan is certainly on the cusp of a recession to kick start the new year.
