Report shows Japan’s GDP to grow faster than expected

C: https://www.japantimes.co.jp/

Japan sees a faster rebound from its pandemic-driven GDP than it had expected. The Official figures are showing that the third-largest economy in the world has grown twice during April to June. But the analysis has also warned about the modest nature of the growth due to the pandemic.

New data is also showing that the economic recovery of China is now losing steam. Preliminary data shows that the GDP of Japan has grown up to 1.3% in the second quarter. It has come up after a 3.7% slump from the previous three months.

The latest figures are far better than the expected gain of up to 0.7%. Businesses have bounced back from the initial impact of the pandemic. But the recovery of Japan is remaining slower than the other economies like the US. The US has recorded a 6.5% jump in its GDP in the second quarter of the year.

The relatively weak rebound of Japan is highlighting how the government has struggled to contain the COVID-19. Japan’s Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura has said,

“I have very mixed feelings about this GDP result.” He added, “Our priority is to prevent the spread of the virus. It’s very bad for the economy for this situation to drag on.” In 2020, the economy of Japan shrank more than 4.8% over the year. It is Japan’s first contraction in over a decade.

The economy of this country has emerged from the initial blow of the last year from the pandemic. The robust exports have helped here much. However, the slow rollout of its vaccination program and the state of emergency series have hurt the consumption.

At the same time, the surge in the Delta variant cases in other parts of Asia has also disrupted their supply chains. This could have hurt the factory output and cause a threat to their fragile recovery.

The China factory output and retail sales have risen much slower than expected. It is bearing the latest sign that the recovery of the world’s second-largest economy is losing its steam. The new COVID outbreaks are disrupting their business.

Credits: BBC

David Meyers