Japan Industrial Output Rises 1.8% In December

(RTTNews) - Industrial production in Japan was up a seasonally adjusted 1.8 percent on month in December, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said in Wednesday's preliminary report.

That missed expectations for an increase of 2.4 percent after slipping 0.9 percent in November.

On a yearly basis, industrial production was down 0.7 percent.

Industries that contributed to the increase included business-oriented machinery, chemicals and production machinery. These were offset by declines among ceramics and other manufacturing.

Upon the release of the data, the METI maintained its assessment of industrial production, saying that it fluctuates indecisively.