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Bank of Japan cuts inflation, economic growth forecasts

Japan will fail to hit its 2% inflation target even by 2022, the central bank predicted today as it also revised down its estimate for growth in the world's third-largest economy.

Business • 25 Apr 19

Japan's government has downgrades its assessment of the economy for the first time in three years

Japan downgrades economic view as trade war bites

Japan's government has downgraded its assessment of the economy in March for the first time in three years, blaming a bruising US-China trade war for slumping exports and industrial output.

Business • 20 Mar 19

Bank of Japan's Governor Haruhiko Kuroda

Bank of Japan gloomier on economy but maintains policy

The Bank of Japan today issued a more downbeat assessment of the world's third biggest economy, as a broader global slowdown impacts exports and production.

Business • 15 Mar 19

Japan, the world's third-biggest economy grew 0.5% in the fourth quarter

Japan's fourth quarter growth revised up to 0.5%

Japan's economy grew faster than initially thought in the fourth quarter of 2018, due partly to strong corporate investment, official figures showed today.

Business • 08 Mar 19

Japan's gross domestic product for the July-September period contracted 0.6% from the previous quarter, new figures show

Japan economy shrinks more than previously thought

Japan's economy shrank twice as much as initially thought in the three months to September, with natural disasters weighing on investment, official data today.

Business • 10 Dec 18

Japanese GDP for the three months from July to September contracted 0.3% from the previous quarter

Japan economy shrinks in Q3 as natural disasters hit

Japan's economy shrank in the three months to September, official data showed today, after a string of natural disasters hit consumer spending and exports, and China's slowing economy cast a shadow.

Business • 14 Nov 18

Mixed figures on Japanese economy released today

Japan household spending posts biggest rise in 3 years

Japan's household spending jumped in August at the fastest annual pace in three years as bigger bonuses boosted consumption.

Business • 05 Oct 18

Japan, the world's third-biggest economy grew 0.7% quarter-on-quarter, in the three months from April to June

Japan's second quarter growth revised up

Japan's economy grew faster than initially thought in the three months from April to June thanks to strong corporate investment, official figures showed today.

Business • 10 Sep 18

The Bank of Japan's Tankan report is a quarterly survey of about 10,000 companies

Japan business confidence slips in June survey

Confidence among Japan's biggest manufacturers has slipped for the second quarter in a row, a key central bank survey showed today.

Business • 02 Jul 18

The Bank of Japan kept its short-term interest rate target at -0.1% - as expected

Japan's central bank dials down inflation view

The Bank of Japan maintained its ultra-loose monetary policy today and downgraded its view on inflation in a fresh blow to its long-held 2% price goal.

Business • 15 Jun 18

The world's third-largest economy contracted by 0.2% quarter-on-quarter in the three months from January to March

Japan confirms economy shrank after two years of growth

Japan's economy slid into negative territory for the first time in two years at the beginning of the year, official data showed today.

Business • 08 Jun 18

Japan's economy contracted by 0.2% quarter-on-quarter in the three months from January to March

Japan economy shrinks after two years of growth

Japan's economy contracted more than expected at the start of this year, suggesting growth has peaked after the best run of expansion in decades.

Business • 16 May 18

Haruhiko Kuroda is on course to become the longest-serving Bank of Japan governor if he completes a full second five-year term

Kuroda wins second term at Bank of Japan

Japan's parliament has approved Haruhiko Kuroda for a second term as central bank governor, with a mandate to battle deflation and pep up the world's third-biggest economy.

Business • 16 Mar 18

The Bank of Japan has failed to achieve its 2% inflation rate target

Cautious Bank of Japan holds line on monetary policy

Japan's central bank said today it was keeping its ultra-loose monetary policy in place, in keeping with expectations, as the world's third-largest economy struggles to rekindle growth.

Business • 09 Mar 18

Japanese gross domestic product expanded 0.4% in the three monts from October to December

Japan's economy powers ahead in fourth quarter

Japan's economy is growing at a faster pace than initially estimated, as the world's third-biggest economy notched up its longest period of expansion since the "bubble" days of the 1980s.

Business • 08 Mar 18

Japanese gross domestic product in the fourth quarter of last year rose 0.1% from the previous three month period

Japan economy grows for eighth quarter in a row

Japan's economy grew for the eighth quarter in a row at the end of 2017, government data showed today, the longest period of expansion since the boom days of the late 1980s.

Business • 14 Feb 18

The Bank of Japan has maintained its 2% inflation target

Cautious Bank of Japan leaves monetary policy unchanged

The Bank of Japan kept its ultra-loose monetary policy in place, despite investor expectations of a move towards an exit from crisis-era stimulus in line with the trend in other major economies.

Business • 23 Jan 18

The Markit/Nikkei Japan Manufacturing Final Purchasing Managers Index came to a seasonally adjusted 54 in December

Japan's manufacturing PMI highest since 2014

Japanese manufacturing activity expanded at the fastest pace in almost four years in December as new orders accelerated, in a sign that steady economic growth will continue into the new year.

Business • 04 Jan 18

The Bank of Japan's Tankan reading was the highest since its December 2006 poll

Japanese business confidence hits 11-year high

Confidence among Japan's biggest manufacturers is at an 11-year high, a key central bank survey showed today, as the world's third biggest economy picks up pace.

Business • 15 Dec 17

Japan's gross domestic product in the third quarter of the year rose by 0.6%

Japan economy growing twice as fast as expected

Japan is growing twice as fast as previously estimated, official data showed today, with the world's third-largest economy posting its longest string of gains in more than two decades.

Business • 08 Dec 17

Japanese gross domestic product (GDP) grew by 0.3% in the third quarter of the year

Japan's economy continues growth spurt but pace slows

Japan notched up its seventh quarter of economic growth in a row, official data showed today, although the rate of expansion in the world's third-biggest economy is slowing.

Business • 15 Nov 17

Japan's core consumer price index, which includes oil products but excludes volatile fresh food prices, rose 0.7% in August

Japan inflation and labour demand signal solid recovery

Japan's core inflation accelerated in August, industrial output rose more than expected and demand for labour remained at its strongest in over 40 years.

Business • 29 Sep 17

Japan's economy recorded a third quarter of annual expansion in a row in the three months from July to September

Japan's economy shows signs of brightening

Japan's factory output rose in November and manufacturers expect to ramp up production in coming months, data showed today.

Business • 28 Dec 16

The yen has fallen over 17% against the dollar since Donald Trump's shock US presidential win in November

Bank of Japan lifts view of economic outlook

The Bank of Japan has improved its view of the world's third biggest economy, providing some relief to the government's stuttering growth drive, as exports pick up on the back of a steep slide in the yen.

Business • 20 Dec 16

A poll showed retailers' mood in May hit the highest level since June last year, when sales were reeling after a sales tax increase

Japanese economy showing signs of recovery

The Bank of Japan (BOJ) has maintained its massive stimulus programme and offered a slightly more upbeat view of the world's third-largest economy.

Business • 22 May 15

Japanese Economy