GDP expanded at an annualised pace of 0.4% in Q4 2023, reversing a 0.4% retreat initially reported.
The focus is now on annual pay negotiations between companies and labour unions, which will culminate with results from the biggest union group, Rengo, on March 15.
A majority of economists expects the BOJ to scrap the negative interest rate with its first hike since 2007 in March or April. Encouraging signs of wage growth in 2024 have increased bets on the rate hike coming on March 19, when the central bank concludes its next policy meeting. Strong corporate capital investment, shown earlier in another report, powered growth in the last quarter, pushing the economy back into expansion. Consumer spending, on the other hand, was revised to show a slightly deeper decline at 0.3 per cent.
The focus is now on annual pay negotiations between companies and labour unions, which will culminate with results from the biggest union group, Rengo, on March 15, the last business day before the BOJ starts its two-day gathering.