Japan’s core machinery orders declined 5.5% month-on-month to ¥982.4 billion in January 2026, reversing a sharp 16.1% jump in December but beating market expectations for a 9.6% drop. The overall contraction was largely driven by a 12.5% fall in manufacturing orders to ¥435.8 billion, while non-manufacturing orders rose 6.8% to ¥563.2 billion.
By industry, the largest declines were recorded in petroleum and coal products (-75.9%), non-ferrous metals (-57.1%), other non-manufacturing (-43.5%), pulp, paper and paper products (-33.8%), and other manufacturing (-14.4%).
On a year-on-year basis, private-sector core orders increased 13.7% in January, moderating from a 16.8% rise in December but still surpassing market forecasts for a 10.5% gain. Core machinery orders are considered a volatile yet important leading indicator of capital expenditure over the coming six to nine months.
