Core private-sector machinery orders rose a seasonally adjusted 2.9 percent in September from the previous month to ¥831.6 billion, the government said Thursday, indicating a pickup in capital spending after the plunge following the April consumption tax hike.
The orders, excluding those for ships and from utilities because of their volatility, expanded for the fourth straight month after rising 4.7 percent in August and 3.5 percent in July, the Cabinet Office said.
Core machinery orders are regarded as a leading indicator of business investment that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has viewed as a pillar of economic growth necessary to beat nearly two decades of deflation since he took office in December 2012.