Japan core machinery orders fall in September, signal fragile capital expenditure

Core machinery orders in Japan fell during the month of September, signaling a fragile capital expenditure in the economy.

Core machine orders in Japan were down 3.3 percent on month in September, data released by the Cabinet Office showed Thursday, coming in at 843.7 billion yen.

That missed expectations for a fall of 1.5 percent following the 2.2 percent decline in August. On a yearly basis, core machine orders picked up 4.3 percent - also exceeding forecast for 4.1 percent following the 11.6 percent spike in the previous month.

The total number of machinery orders, including those volatile ones for ships and from electric power companies, fell 0.7 percent on month and gained 0.9 percent on year to 972.1 billion yen.

Meanwhile, companies surveyed by the Cabinet Office forecast that core orders will fall 5.9 percent in October-December from the previous quarter. Orders rose 7.3 percent in July-September.