Posted on 17 Nov 2008
Japan in recession
Japan fell into a recession in the third quarter for the first time since 2001, as the impact of the global slowdown took its toll on the world's No. 2 economy.
Japan's gross domestic product, or the total value of the nation's goods and services, dropped at an annual pace of 0.4 percent in the July-Septebmer period as companies sharply curtailed spending, the government said Monday.
The worse-than-expected result indicates that Japan is now in a "technical recession,'' defined as two straight quarters of negative growth.
GDP in the April-June period fell a revised 3.7 percent and rose 4.0 percent in the first quarter.
Economists surveyed by Kyodo news agency had predicted an annualized 0.1 percent rise.
On a quarterly basis, GDP contracted 0.1 percent, the government said.
Business investment - a main driver of Japan's six-year economic recovery since 2002 - slid 1.7 percent from the previous quarter.
In trading Monday, the benchmark Nikkei 225 stock index was down 2.7 percent.
