2014.07.2922:45:00UTC+00Japan Industrial Production Tumbles 3.3% In June

Industrial output in Japan was down 3.3 percent on month in June, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said on Wednesday.

That was well shy of forecasts for a decline of 1.2 percent following the 0.7 percent increase in May.

On a yearly basis, industrial production added 3.2 percent - also missing expectations for 5.2 percent but up from 1.0 percent in the previous month.

Upon the release of the data, the METI downgraded its assessment of output, saying that industrial production has weakened. The METI had previous held that output had been flat.

Industries that mainly contributed to the decrease included transportation equipment, business machinery and electronics equipment.

Commodities that mainly contributed to the decrease were large passenger cars, reaction vessels and plastic products.

According to the survey of production forecast in manufacturing, production is expected to increase 2.5 percent in July and 1.1 percent in August.

Industries that mainly contributed to the increase in July include general-purpose, production and business oriented machinery, chemicals and others.

Industries that mainly contributed to the increase in August were electronic parts, electronics equipment and electrical machinery.

Shipments in June fell 1.9 percent on month, falling for the fifth consecutive month. They showed an increase of 2.2 percent on year.

Industries that mainly contributed to the decrease included transportation equipment, iron and steel and electronics equipment.

Inventories in June gained 1.9 percent on month, rising for the second straight month. They also gained 2.7 percent on year.

Industries that mainly contributed to the increase were transport equipment, business oriented machinery and ceramic products.

The Inventory Ratio in April climbed 3.5 percent on month, rising for the second straight month. It was also up 1.2 percent on year.