The January ``machinery order statistics,'' which show the future outlook for corporate capital investment, showed that the amount of orders received from domestic companies was lower than the previous month for the first time in two months.
In response to this, the Cabinet Office lowered its basic assessment for the first time in 1 year and 2 months.
According to an announcement by the Cabinet Office, the total amount of orders received by major machinery manufacturers from domestic companies in January was 823.8 billion yen, excluding ships and electric power, which are subject to large fluctuations, which was 1.7% lower than the previous month.
This is the first time in two months that the order amount has been lower than the previous month.
Looking at the breakdown, orders from the manufacturing industry decreased by 13.2%, falling below the previous month for the first time in two months.
Orders for pumps, hydraulic equipment, etc. from the chemical industry, which had increased significantly in the previous month, decreased, and orders for motors, etc. from the automobile industry also decreased.
On the other hand, orders in the non-manufacturing industry increased for the first time in four months, increasing by 6.5% from the previous month due to an increase in orders from transportation and other industries.
In response to these circumstances, the Cabinet Office downgraded its basic assessment, stating that the economy is currently in a weak tone.
This is the first time in 1 year and 2 months that the basic judgment has been lowered.
In addition, the outlook for the three months from January to this month is expected to increase by 4.9%.