Japan economy gains speedJune 8, 2015 - 09:27 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Growth in the Japanese economy in the first quarter has been revised sharply higher, official government data shows, according t BBC News. The world's third largest economy expanded 1% in the first three months from the previous three, up from an initial estimate of 0.6%. It also grew 3.9% on an annualized basis, compared to a preliminary reading of 2.4%, and much higher than forecasts of 2.7% growth. A jump in business spending helped boost growth well above expectations. In the initial estimate, business spending was up just 0.4% from the previous quarter. The revised reading was 2.7% higher, compared to forecasts of 2.3%. The revised figures make growth in first quarter the best for Japan in two years. The data is boosting hopes of a continuing recovery from the recession that the country fell into last year and is good news for the government and central bank which have both been trying to stimulate growth in the Asian giant. But, not all economists are convinced that Japan is on track for a better outlook. Marcel Thieliant, economist at Capital Economics, expects growth in the second quarter to have slowed. "Core consumer spending fell to the lowest level since last summer in April, and industrial output may well contract this quarter," he said in a note. "We therefore expect a sharp slowdown in GDP (gross domestic product) growth in the second quarter." Other data on Monday, June 8, also showed that Japan's current account, a broad measure of trade, in April fell below expectations despite hitting a surplus for the 10th consecutive month. The current account surplus was at 1.3 trillion yen ($10.5bn), compared to a forecast of 1.7 trillion yen. In May, the surplus was at a seven-year high of 2.8 trillion yen. Related links: Top stories Yerevan has dismissed Turkey’s demand to shut down the Armenian nuclear power plant as “inappropriate”. Armenia will loan 2.9 billion drams to Nagorno Karabakh (Artsakh), according to a draft government decision. The Ministry of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan has “strongly condemned” Armenia’s decision. Kerobyan has said that for the first time in the history of Armenia, the volume of foreign direct investments amounted to about $1 billion. Partner news | Narek Manasyan wins European Boxing Championships silver for Armenia Armenia’s Narek Manasyan (92kg) won Armenia’s second silver medal at the European Boxing Championships 2024 on April 28. Blinken urges Azerbaijan to continue negotiations with Armenia Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken has urged Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to continue negotiations with Armenia. Pashinyan, Blinken talk Armenia-U.S. ties over the phone Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan had a phone conversation with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on April 28, Pashinyan’s office reports. Titus, Bilirakis lead legislation to sanction Azerbaijani war criminals Representatives Dina Titus (D-NV) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) have introduced the bipartisan legislation. |