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Japanese retail sales fall faster than expected in July; factory output rebounds

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Japanese retail sales fall faster than expected in July; factory output rebounds

Retail sales in Japan fell at a faster-than-expected annual pace in July, while the rebound in industrial production beat market estimates, preliminary government data showed.

The value of Japanese retail sales in July fell 2.0% on a yearly basis to ¥12.165 trillion, compared with 0.5% growth a month ago, preliminary data from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry showed. The consensus estimate of economists polled by Econoday was for a 0.8% drop in sales.

On a monthly basis, retail sales decreased by 2.3% in seasonally adjusted terms, after stalling in the previous month.

Meanwhile, Japanese factory output recorded a better-than-expected rebound in July from a month ago, with the seasonally adjusted industrial production index climbing 1.3% to 102.7 following a revised 3.3% drop in June. The Econoday consensus estimate was for a 0.3% rise.

The ministry said industrial production "fluctuates indecisively." It attributed growth to motor vehicles and paper products, while petroleum and electrical machinery contributed to a decrease.

On a monthly basis, shipments registered a 2.6% rise in July, while inventories fell 0.3%. The inventory ratio dropped 2.2% to 107.4 in July.

Separately, Japan's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate came in at 2.2% in July, down from June's reading of 2.3% and below the Econoday consensus estimate of 2.4%, data from the country's Statistics Bureau showed.

The number of employed persons came in at 67.31 million, up by 710,000, or 1.1%, from July 2018.

As of Aug. 29, US$1 was equivalent to ¥106.51.