Japan says economy grows 0.5% in July-September

This file photo taken June 20, 2016, shows a container being unloaded from an international freighter at a port in Tokyo. Japan is eyeing an overhaul of how it measures growth in its economy, and that is stirring fresh questions about the reliability of the world’s go-to indicator – gross domestic product — in the digital age. AFP FILE

TOKYO, Japan — Japan’s economy grew more than expected in the third quarter as exports offset slack consumer spending, official data showed Monday.

The world’s third largest economy expanded 0.5 percent quarter-on-quarter between July and September, for an annualized 2.2 percent expansion in Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the Cabinet Office said.

The market had forecast a slower 0.2 percent growth rate, or an annualized expansion of 0.8 percent.

Japan’s economy contracted in the last three months of 2015, before bouncing back in January-March with a 0.5 percent rise quarter-on-quarter and then a tepid 0.2 percent expansion in April-June.

The wobbly growth trend has put Japanese officials under pressure to deliver as economists increasingly write off Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s bid to cement a lasting recovery, dubbed Abenomics.

His spend-for-growth policy since late 2012 boosted stock prices and pushed down the yen, helping Japanese exports.

But the yen, often bought as a safe haven in times of uncertainty, had been on the upswing since the start of the year, and got a big bump after Britain’s shock vote to exit the European Union.

It has since reversed course, falling against the dollar after billionaire businessman Donald Trump’s election as US president, offering up some good news for Abe’s administration.

The Japanese currency was around four-month lows against the dollar, brightening the outlook for exporters in the coming months. CBB