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Japan's key economic gauge rises in January on robust factory output, improving exports

Xinhua, March 7, 2016 Adjust font size:

Japan's composite index of economic indicators, a key gauge of the overall condition of the economy, improved in January for the first time in three months, the Cabinet Office said in a preliminary report on Monday.

The index of coincident indicators, spanning factory output, retail sales and the availability of new employment opportunities, gained 2.9 points from the previous month, to 113.8 against the 2010 base of 100, the government's latest data showed.

Key elements causing the gauge to rise, included an uptick in output in the electronic parts and devices sector, which itself was buoyed by rising demand for smartphones here from travelers visiting from overseas ahead of the Lunar New Year.

In addition, firm exports of both investment and durable goods helped the index to rise, although the rise was capped by wholesale sales weighing on the gauge, the data set showed.

The index of leading indicators, which estimates conditions in the coming months, however, dropped 0.4 point to 101.4, marking the third straight month of decline, while the lagging indicators, which track the economic performance in the recent past, retreated 0.9 point to 114.7, after logging a 0.1 point increase a month earlier.

The composite index is calculated based on the growth and shrinkage of the component indicators and shows the direction and size of economic trends. Endit