Big Japanese manufacturers remain gloomy as external demand ebbs – survey

By Tetsushi Kajimoto

TOKYO (Reuters) – Big Japanese manufacturers remained pessimistic in April for a fourth straight month as jitters over Western banks added to slowing global growth, the monthly Reuters Tankan survey showed on Wednesday, dimming prospects for an export-led recovery.

The Reuters Tankan, which closely tracks the Bank of Japan’s (BOA) quarterly key tankan survey, canvassed 493 big non-financial firms, of which 239 responded during the April 5-14 period on condition of anonymity.

It showed the mood in the service sector improved for a second straight month to reach a four-month high, reflecting a post-COVID recovery led by inbound tourism that has boosted restaurants and retailers.

The survey results chimed with the BOJ tankan published on April 3, which showed the big manufacturers sentiment index had worsened for a fifth consecutive quarter, hurt by elevated costs of raw and other materials, energy and mixed feed, while the service sector mood slightly improved after easing COVID curbs.

The sentiment index for big manufacturers in the Reuters Tankan survey stood at minus 3, unchanged from the previous month, according to the survey.

The Reuters Tankan manufacturers index is expected to rebound to plus 7 over the next three months.

The large service-sector firms’ index edged up to plus 24 in April from plus 21 seen in the previous month, hitting the highest level since December. The index is expected to fall to plus 19 in July.

BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda has vowed to continue monetary easing for the time being to support a fragile economy, while stressing the need for sustaining any inflation entailed by wage hikes.

The Reuters Tankan indexes are calculated by subtracting the percentage of pessimistic respondents from optimistic ones. A negative figure means pessimists outnumber optimists.

($1 = 134.1600 yen)

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