Japan Inc seen growing more cautious
Friday, 14 December 2007
TOKYO, Dec 13 (AFP): A central bank survey of corporate Japan is expected to show top executives grew more cautious in the fourth quarter due to worries about the health of the global economy and rising costs, analysts said.
Jitters about the US subprime mortgage crisis and a stronger yen are expected to be reflected in the results of the Bank of Japan's quarterly Tankan survey, due to be published Friday, they said.
Faced with a deterioration in the business climate, companies may scale back their profit forecasts and restrain, or even lower, planned capital investment in new equipment and factories, analysts predicted.
The corporate sector has been a key driver of Japan's recovery from a slump stretching back over a decade, while the BoJ held rates steady for the eleventh straight meeting in November and economists say another rate hike is unlikely any time soon.
Economists predict, on average, that the headline index of business confidence among big manufacturers will show a fall to 21 in December from 23 in the September Tankan survey of more than 10,000 companies.
Jitters about the US subprime mortgage crisis and a stronger yen are expected to be reflected in the results of the Bank of Japan's quarterly Tankan survey, due to be published Friday, they said.
Faced with a deterioration in the business climate, companies may scale back their profit forecasts and restrain, or even lower, planned capital investment in new equipment and factories, analysts predicted.
The corporate sector has been a key driver of Japan's recovery from a slump stretching back over a decade, while the BoJ held rates steady for the eleventh straight meeting in November and economists say another rate hike is unlikely any time soon.
Economists predict, on average, that the headline index of business confidence among big manufacturers will show a fall to 21 in December from 23 in the September Tankan survey of more than 10,000 companies.