According to a preliminary report released on Wednesday by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, Japan saw a moderately adjusted 1.8 percent increase in industrial production during December. However, this was under the anticipated growth of 2.4 percent, after a decrease of 0.9 percent in November.
Throughout the year, there was a 0.7 percent reduction in industrial production. Areas such as business-oriented machinery, chemical and production machinery made considerable contributions to this expansion. Nevertheless, this was counterbalanced by the manufacturing section's descent, notably ceramics.
The Ministry maintains an uncertain outlook on industrial production due to its volatile nature. The data revealed that monthly shipments increased by 2.5 percent and yearly shipments by 0.7 percent. In contrast, the inventory rate decreased by 1.2 percent over the month and 0.2 percent over the year, while the inventory ratio decreased by 2.9 percent on a monthly basis but increased by 2.4 percent on a yearly basis.
Industries contributing to the increase in shipments included transport equipment, motor vehicles, and business-oriented machinery. This was opposed by declines in electronic parts and devices segments. Industries contributing to the decrease in inventories were motor vehicles, iron and steel, and production machinery. However, these losses were mitigated by gains in plastic products and communications electronics equipment.
The Ministry projected a 6.2 percent monthly decline in industrial output in January, followed by a 2.2 percent increase in February. Factors contributing to the January decrease include transport equipment, communications electronics equipment, and production machinery. In contrast, business-oriented machinery, electronic parts, and communications electronics equipment are expected to contribute significantly to the February increase.
In other economic news, the total value of retail sales in Japan increased by 2.1 percent year-on-year in December, reaching 15.515 trillion yen. Despite this, it fell below predictions for a 4.7 percent increase after November's 5.4 percent rise.
In terms of monthly figures, retail sales dropped by 2.9 percent, while commercial sales rose by 0.4 percent year-on-year and 0.6 percent month-on-month, reaching 55.106 trillion yen. On the other hand, wholesale sales fell by 0.2 percent over the year but surged by 2.3 percent over a year to 39.591 trillion yen.
For the fourth quarter of 2023, retail sales increased by 3.8 percent year-on-year, but decreased by 1.7 percent quarter-on-quarter to 42.989 trillion yen. Overall, in 2023, retail sales rose by 5.6 percent to 162.996 trillion yen.
