Japan’s industrial production rose a seasonally adjusted 1.1 per cent in December from the previous month for the first increase in two months, the Government said on Friday.
The figure, which was below the 1.3-per-cent rise predicted by analysts surveyed by the Nikkei business daily, followed a 0.1-per-cent fall in December.
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry maintained its basic assessment, saying “industrial production continues to show an upward movement’’.
The index of production at factories and mines stood at 100.3 against a baseline of 100 for 2005, the Ministry said.
General-purpose, production and business-oriented machinery, fabricated metals, and electronics devices industries contributed to the bulk of the increase in December, it said.
Manufacturers surveyed by the Ministry expected industrial production to jump 6.3 per cent in January and edge up 0.3 per cent in February.
The index of industrial shipments climbed 0.6 per cent in December from the previous month to 99.7, and that of industrial inventories fell 0.4 per cent to 105.7, it said.