Economy: Kyodo News and Missile Programs

economy: Three firms expected a slowdown ; The upbeat sentiment comes as amid continued moderate growth since 2012, according to The Japan Times. The International Monetary Fund projects Japan's nominal gross domestic product to reach 546.24 trillion 5 trillion up from 494.96 trillion five years ago. Of the 108 companies surveyed by Kyodo News in the second half of July, including Toyota Motor Corp. and Sony Corp., 76, or 70 percent, said the economy is likely to have expanded or expanded moderately by the end of the year, while 26 said they expect it to remain flat. But concerns remain that heightened tensions over North Korea's nuclear and missile programs could be a drag on stocks and lead to the yen's appreciation, affecting the real economy. The top reason for expecting growth this year was a recovery in capital investment, which was cited by 49 firms. In real terms, the IMF forecasts 1.3 percent growth this year, revised upward from its April estimate of 1.2 percent. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.