Japan - February machinery orders

Even allowing for month-to-month volatility, Japanese machine orders in February were soft. The weakness in foreign orders is especially notable, and while more of a coincident rather than leading indicator for Japanese exports, it is another indicator that the global environment for the Asian export complex is beginning to shift.

The data also suggest sluggishness in Japanese domestic capex demand. That is significant, given that the recovery in the Japanese economy from covid is already lagging other advanced economies.