Japan Q1 corporate capex up 3.4pc

TOKYO: Japanese companies raised spending on factories and equipment in January-March by 3.4 percent from the same period last year, Ministry of Finance data showed on Friday.

Excluding software, capital expenditure was virtually flat from the previous quarter on a seasonally adjusted basis, the MOF data showed.

The data will be used to calculate revised gross domestic product figures due on June 8. The reading followed a preliminary estimate that Japan´s economy shrank by an annualised rate of 0.6 percent driven by declines in investment and consumption and weaker export growth.