Japan’s factory output recovers, unemployment rate drops on lockdown easing

June had seen Japan’s industrial output breaking its four-month slump. The recuperation could be attributed to a modest recovery seen in broader business and consumer activity after the world’s third-biggest economy suffered from the coronavirus pandemic.

Japan’s factory output advanced 2.7% in June, official data showed on Friday. This followed after it plunged to its sharpest level since the financial crisis of 2009.

 Separate data showed the unemployment rate in June inched lower from its three-year peak recorded in May. However, the number of job vacancies per applicant surpassed a five-year low record.

The increase was mainly from a recovery monitored in motor vehicle production, placing higher than the 1.2% jump predicted in a Reuters survey. In addition to this, Japan has resumed its economic operations after the government lifted lockdown measures at the end of May.