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Manufacturers' sentiment index unchanged in April from
March
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Service sector index +24 in April vs +21 in March
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Manufacturers' mood seen improving in next 3 months
By Tetsushi Kajimoto
TOKYO, April 19 (Reuters) - Big Japanese manufacturers
remained pessimistic in April for a fourth straight month as
jitters over Western banks added to slowing global growth, the
monthly Reuters Tankan survey showed on Wednesday, dimming
prospects for an export-led recovery.
The Reuters Tankan, which closely tracks the Bank of Japan's
(BOA) quarterly key tankan survey, canvassed 493 big
non-financial firms, of which 239 responded during the April
5-14 period on condition of anonymity.
It showed the mood in the service sector improved for a
second straight month to reach a four-month high, reflecting a
post-COVID recovery led by inbound tourism that has boosted
restaurants and retailers.
The survey results chimed with the BOJ tankan published on
April 3, which showed the big manufacturers sentiment index had
worsened for a fifth consecutive quarter, hurt by elevated costs
of raw and other materials, energy and mixed feed, while the
service sector mood slightly improved after easing COVID curbs.
The sentiment index for big manufacturers in the Reuters
Tankan survey stood at minus 3, unchanged from the previous
month, according to the survey.
The Reuters Tankan manufacturers index is expected to
rebound to plus 7 over the next three months.
The large service-sector firms' index edged up to plus 24 in
April from plus 21 seen in the previous month, hitting the
highest level since December. The index is expected to fall to
plus 19 in July.
BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda has vowed to continue monetary
easing for the time being to support a fragile economy, while
stressing the need for sustaining any inflation entailed by wage
hikes.
The Reuters Tankan indexes are calculated by subtracting the percentage of pessimistic respondents from optimistic ones. A negative figure means pessimists outnumber optimists. ($1 = 134.1600 yen) <^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Breakdown of the survey results ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^> (Reporting by Tetsushi Kajimoto Editing by Gareth Jones)
