Japanese machinery orders and wholesale prices data have come in weaker than expected, in figures which could move the authorities closer to fresh action to support an already fragile economic recovery.
Market speculation that the Bank of Japan will have to relax its already loose monetary policy has increased as policymakers raised alarm bells over a rise in the yen towards a 15-year high against the dollar.
But this week the Bank of Japan avoided fresh policy action and maintained its view that risks to the economy were balanced.
Data showed that core private-sector machinery orders, a highly volatile series regarded as an indicator of capital spending, rose 1.6% in June, much less than a 5.5% forecast.
Other figures showed wholesale prices fell 0.1% in the year to July, against a forecast for a 0.1% rise, underlining the stubborn deflation hitting Japan. Consumer prices have fallen from a year earlier for 16 months in a row.
