Japanese Machinery Orders Take A Dive

Japanese core private-sector machinery orders plunged by a sharper-than-expected 10% in September, more than reversing a sharp rise in August, the government said Nov. 10.

The orders, viewed as a leading indicator of corporate capital spending, were still 4.8% higher in September compared with a year earlier.

Machinery orders placed by the manufacturing sector in September declined 6.4% month-on-month but were 15% higher than a year earlier while non-manufacturer orders slid 12.1% and 1.9%.

Analysts said fluctuations in mobile phone handset orders may have contributed to the recent sharp swings in the numbers.

Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2005