Japan’s economy falls sharply on coronavirus-ravaged consumption

Japan’s economy plunged more than what was expected in the first quarter, bringing in concerns for its major trading partners’ economic emergence. This could be attributed to surging coronavirus infections and dwindling vaccinations that heavily damaged the country’s consumption.

The world’s third-largest economy recorded a 5.1% annualized drop from January to March. This came larger than the 4.6% contraction predicted by markets. More so, the figure reversed heavily from the second quarter’s 11.65% hike, data from the government showed.

The contraction followed after the country’s private consumption dropped a total of 1.4%. the data also showed that consumption’s weak reading was from subdued spending for clothes and dining brought about by the coronavirus pandemic.