Japan revises growth in Oct-Dec downward to 1.5%

The facts: Monday’s revision reflects downward inventory adjustments, lower private demand and flat-lining corporate and residential investment. It also showed a slight drop in incomes.The revision puts inflation-adjusted growth for the year flat at exactly 0.0%,

The Government mouthpiece: “The economy is growing. Wages are growing. There is a rosy future for the Japanese economy,”

Another triumph for the Dear Leader's revolutionary economic policy.

Yes, money printing and weaker yen just not working.

So we can add another year to the so-called "lost decades". Unfortunately, this will not be the last one.

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People are worried and the result of the worrying is they don’t want to spend much,” Shiller said. “There’s no easy cure for these psychological fluctuations.”

They don't have (much) to spend, these are not psychological fluctuations rather harsh reality, forced inflation, price rise and tax hike Vs lower wages.

Estimates for 4th quarter GDP growth was originally 3.6%, then we got a disappointing 2.2% number last month, today it is revised to 1.5%, really?? From 3.6% to 1.5%, I am amazed people are still believe in Abenomics.

"sweeping reforms"?

If it is possible to sweep with a toothbrush, then I guess this wording is fair to describe the Abenomics reforms.

Or is the reference to some tinkering with the labour laws for cleaners?

There is definetly inflation. You can barely buy a days worth of food for 1000 yen. Unless wages go up, I can see how its sustainable. Job increases are in the service industry and some automotive sectors, usually P/T work. The equation doesnt balance; I dont get how its all supposed to work

The government earlier reported that the economy grew at a 2.2% annual rate in the final quarter of 2014 after contracting 6.4% in April-June and 2.6% in July-September.

It's interesting how this is reported. On the BBC website, it's reported as follows:

The economy grew 0.4% between October and December compared with the previous quarter, lower than the preliminary reading and forecasts of 0.6%.

Reporting the adjusted annual rate of 2.2% probably plays better than reporting the quarterly growth of only 0.4%.

Really? Did anyone believe it would not be revised down?

"Monday’s revision reflects downward inventory adjustments, lower private demand and flat-lining corporate and residential investment. It also showed a slight drop in incomes."

Yep, them sure are signs of recovery... IF you are delusional as Abe and his looney-toon cronies(and a few JT apologists) are. N. V. T.S!

Extreme monetary easing has been the linchpin of the “Abenomics” economic revival strategy, along with strong government spending and sweeping reforms

That's Abenomics' failure. If Japan is going to see better growth, demand has to go up. Nothing in Abenomics leads to higher take-home pay. Allowing the consumption tax increase to go through was reckless, and limited, if not negated, Japan's growth potential (however meager it might have been).

PM Abe's economic policies are unimaginative, ineffective, and, ultimately, will result in a worsening economy, not a growing one. Hold the line on taxes, or cut them, rein in spending, and liberalize the Japanese market. Join the TPP, or start more robust trade deals by itself.

Abenomics is poorly named as it doesn't really focus on fixing the economy. It's a show piece, not a comprehensive set of reforms to revive the economy.

People remember, especially those who were stating that abenomics was working, when the initial figures came out. THE REVISED FIGURES MEAN THAT THE JAPANESE ECONOMY ACTUALLY SHRANK IN 2014. The economy, for all the BOJ and government public spending, shrank by 0.3% in 2014

Reporting the adjusted annual rate of 2.2% probably plays better than reporting the quarterly growth of only 0.4%.

They did the same with the anualized 6.4% decline in Q2, while it only was a decline of 1.6%.

“There is a rosy future for the Japanese economy,” Hamada said.

Can I buy some of the drugs this guy is using? Best case, most international economists are predicting a 1.5% growth for the Japanese economy in 2015. By what definition is that "rosy"?

So much for Abenomics, which is basically "smoke and mirrors." Just throwing money around with little structural reform won't make it. This was dismal news, but NHK, Abe's nationalistic mouthpiece, mostly brushed it over. BBC told it like it is--a failure of his policies.