3rd Quarter GDP rises 0.5%, or 2% annually
In the July-September quarter, Japan recorded economic growth of 0.5%, or an annual rate of 2.0%. The increase in GDP exceeded analyst expectations. Although domestic consumption stalled, better-than-anticipated exports produced significant growth. One statistic that caught our eyes was that, while since the fourth quarter of 2005 total worker compensation has risen Y1,800 billion, total consumption was down Y900 billion. So perhaps the problems in private consumptionis are only partly structural in nature; they may also reflect a temporary unwillingness for Japanese to spend that will dissipate with greater consumer confidence.