The economy grew slightly more than initially reported for the first quarter, helped by a fractional revision in private consumption and business investment that dropped less than first thought.
Gross domestic product expanded by an annualized 1.9 percent in the three months ended March 31, more than a preliminary reading of 1.7 percent, according to revised data from the Cabinet Office released on Wednesday. The median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg was for a 1.9 percent increase.
The upward revision may be some relief to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who is struggling to revive the economy and decided to postpone an increase in the sales tax. While GDP rebounded from a contraction in the final quarter of 2015, growth was bolstered in the three months through March by the leap year that provided an extra day of spending. A slowdown in overseas demand and the yen's strength remain risks for 2016.