Business

Published: 14 May 2009 18:05:03 PST

TOKYO, May 15 – Japan’s core private-sector machinery orders fell 1.3 percent in March from the previous month, data showed on Friday, suggesting that a recovery in capital spending may be delayed.

The fall compared with a median market forecast for a 4.5 percent decline.

Manufacturers surveyed by the Cabinet Office forecast that core orders, a highly volatile series regarded as an indicator of capital spending in the coming six to nine months, would fall 5.0 percent in April-June from the previous quarter.

In the January-March quarter core orders, which exclude those for ships and machinery at electric power firms, fell 9.9 percent from the previous three months.

March orders fell 22.2 percent from a year earlier, less than a median forecast for a 28.1 percent decline.

Japan is mired in its worst recession since World War Two but exports and output have shown some signs of recovery, adding to hopes the worldwide slump may be nearing a bottom.

Analysts, however, expect a recovery in the world’s No.2 economy to be fragile as many companies slash jobs and cut back on capital spending on weak domestic demand.