Shinzo Abe and Gross Domestic Product

Cabinet Office: Core machinery orders are regarded as a leading indicator of capital spending, according to The Japan Times. The figures are closely watched as Prime Minister Shinzo Abe views business investment — which accounts for around 15 percent of the nation gross domestic product — as a pillar of economic growth necessary to tame deflation. The private-sector orders, excluding those for ships and from utilities because of their volatility, fell following a seasonally adjusted 1.7 percent drop in January and an 8.3 percent jump in December, the Cabinet Office said. As the pace of decline in core machinery orders was slow, the government kept its basic assessment unchanged for the second consecutive month, saying the orders have shown signs of a moderate pickup. In a bid to ease the adverse effects of the yen previous appreciation, triggered mainly by the 2008 global financial crisis and the eurozone sovereign debt crisis, many manufacturers moved their production bases offshore. Despite the slight fall in February, some analysts say machinery orders may be set to expand as the yen depreciation shores up exports further and prompts more Japanese firms to shift production back to their home country. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.