Japan Thanks: Percent and Food Prices

japan thanks: The economy grew 1.0 percent in 2016, according to The Japan Times. Activity surprised on the upside in Japan thanks to strong net exports, the IMF said in its latest World Economic Outlook. The IMF upgraded its forecast for the world's third-largest economy to 1.2 percent GDP growth in 2017 and 0.6 percent next year, from a January projection of 0.8 percent and 0.5 percent respectively. Inflation appeared to be bottoming out and would increase, it said, helped by higher fresh food prices and fading downward pressure from the earlier yen appreciation. Inflation and factory output have picked up recently while the labor market is tight, with the unemployment rate at a two-decade low. The nation, grappling with low birthrates and a shrinking labor force, has struggled to achieve a firm economic recovery and to put years of deflation behind it. (news.financializer.com). As reported in the news.