Japan’s August Factory Activity Grows at Slowest Pace in 19 Months: Flash PMI
TOKYO— Japan’s factory activity growth slowed to a 19-month low in August as output and new order declines deepened, amid growing pressure from persistent rises in raw material and energy costs and weakening global demand.
Activity in the services sector contracted for the first time in five months, as a fall in new business raised worries about lackluster demand at home.
The au Jibun Bank Flash Japan Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) fell to a seasonally adjusted 51.0 in August from a 52.1 final in July, marking the slowest expansion since January last year. The 50-mark separates contraction from expansion.
The headline figure was pulled down in the second consecutive month of declines in output and overall new orders. New orders shrank at the fastest rate in nearly two years….