Dec 09, 2002 (ODJ Select via COMTEX) -- The Cabinet Office revised the data
upward after including previously unavailable information, such as the September
current account data and demand figures for capital investment, an official
briefing reporters said.
The net export drag on the economy was revised down to a 0.2 point fall,
compared with a preliminary 0.1 point drop. The fall in capital investment
slowed to minus 0.5% from the original drop of 0.9%.
Personal consumption was revised up to 1.0% compared with the preliminary figure
of 0.8% due to an increase in the weighting of insurance and pension-related
expenditures in the data, he said.
The revised figures show the Japanese economy expanded for only one quarter, not
two straight quarters as first reported as the government revised down first
quarter growth from 0.2% to flat. Second quarter growth was revised down from
1.0% to 0.9%.
But analysts said growth is expected to slow in the fourth quarter due to
faltering exports and concerns over Japanese financial markets and deflation,
raising fears another slump may be around the corner.
If the economy contracts less than 1.2% in each of the last two quarters, Japan
will still be on able to hit the government's target of 0.2% growth for the
fiscal year through March, the Cabinet Office said.
