We had Japanese inflation and employment data earlier:
- Tokyo inflation data for November, headline is 0.8% y/y (vs. expected 0.6%)
- Japan Unemployment rate for October: 2.4% (expected 2.4%)
Industrial production data now, this the preliminary.
For the m/m comes in at -4.2% for a miss on estimates and the biggest decline m/m since January of 2018
- expected -2.0% m/m, prior 1.7%
And for the y/y, -7.4%, also a miss
- expected -5.2% y/y, prior 1.3%
Outlooks:
- Manufacturers expect November to show -1.5% m/m
- and December +1.1% m/m
Japan's METI comment on the data:
- says there is weakness is industrial production
METI is normally more sanguine than that. Not a positive sign for this sector.
Factors to bear in mind include slowing global demand and the sales tax hike introduced in the month (this weighed on domestic consumption in the month).
Weather was also an impact, the typhoon caused flooding, impacting both production and consumption.
Japan's government will introduce a special extra budget with more spending in an effort to boost growth. The Bank of Japan will remain under pressure to hold steady, and even add to, its easing measures.
