Japan spent the first quarter of 2009 in its worst spiral of decline ever recorded, with GDP in the world’s second largest economy shrinking at an annualised pace of 15.2 per cent as the country’s export-focused business model was tested to the extreme.
Japan spent the first quarter of 2009 in its worst spiral of decline ever recorded, with GDP in the world’s second largest economy shrinking at an annualised pace of 15.2 per cent as the country’s export-focused business model was tested to the extreme.
Plunging exports, a strong yen and an unprecedented drop in production were the chief culprits, though an acute drop in consumer spending also dealt significant damage to growth.
However analysts and Tokyo dealing floors appeared unfazed by the numbers: following the government’s recent revision to the GDP figures for the fourth quarter of 2008, economists had been expecting the contraction to be over 16 per cent in the January to March quarter.
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