Tag - economic-indicators

 
Menu
Search
 
July 01, 2026
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Despite a Supreme People's Court ruling making it illegal for workers and employers to avoid social insurance payments, many workers in China feel they earn too little to contribute.
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
Mar 2, 2026
As parliament meets, China is yet to pass last year’s economic reform test
Economists see the ruling making it illegal for workers and employers to avoid social insurance payments as a pivotal test for Beijing, but many say compliance remains partial.
Surpassing Japan would be more of a reflection of scale than prosperity for India. Per capita income in the country remains just above $3,000, a fraction of Japan’s $36,390, according to IMF estimates for 2026.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 28, 2026
India’s GDP revisions mean it will take longer to overtake Japan
Still, the trajectory is clear, given India’s economy is expanding more than 7% and its mostly young population of 1.4 billion is growing.
Consumer prices excluding fresh food in the Tokyo area rose 1.8% from a year earlier in February, the smallest gain since October 2024, indicating Japan’s price growth has entered a cooler phase.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 27, 2026
Tokyo CPI falls below BOJ’s target, complicating rate hike message
The data poses a communication challenge for the Bank of Japan as it looks to proceed with interest rate hikes.
Yekaterina Oreshkina, 39, owner of the BonCafe bakery chain, poses in front of a cafe she was forced to close due to rising food prices, rent and taxes, in Moscow on Feb. 18. Her other outlets remain open.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 24, 2026
In Russia, many restaurants and cafes close amid major slowdown
Consumption has stalled even in affluent Moscow.
The New York Stock Exchange in Manhattan, New York. Bank of America's February fund-manager survey showed investors switched from U.S. equities to emerging market equities at the fastest rate in five years.
BUSINESS / Markets
Feb 24, 2026
From ‘buy America’ to ‘bye America’: More U.S. investors are spending elsewhere
Bank of America’s February fund-manager survey showed investors switched from U.S. equities to emerging market equities at the fastest rate in five years.
Consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 2% from a year earlier in January, the smallest gain since January 2024, after the gauge climbed 2.4% in the previous month.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 20, 2026
Japan’s CPI cools to slowest pace in two years on distortions
Temporary factors and food prices drove the slowdown.
Japan's core machine orders in December rose 19% from the previous month, rebounding from an 11% slide in November.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 19, 2026
Record rise in orders for Japanese machinery points to solid investment
Core machine orders rose 19% from the previous month, rebounding from an 11% slide in November, the Cabinet Office has reported.
A wholesale mall in Shenzhen, China. The International Monetary Fund called for a reorientation by Beijing to embrace an economic model based on domestic consumer spending.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 19, 2026
IMF warns China’s economic policies are causing damage to others
The fund called for a reorientation by Beijing to embrace a model based on domestic consumer spending.
Japan’s exports rose 16.8% in January from a year earlier, the fastest pace since November 2022, driven by strong chip shipments to China and auto exports to the EU, the Finance Ministry said Wednesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 18, 2026
Japan’s exports rise most in three years as AI underpins chips
The value of overall exports gained 16.8% in January from a year earlier, the sharpest increase since November 2022, the Finance Ministry said.
Japan’s real gross domestic product grew an annualized 0.2% for the October-December quarter, falling below market estimates.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 16, 2026
Japan’s economy barely grew in fourth quarter and just avoided recession
Japan’s economy grew less than expected and just avoided a recession, with gross domestic product growing 0.2% annualized in the fourth quarter.
Copper cathode sheets at a mining complex in Morenci, Arizona. Japan's producer prices of nonferrous metals surged 33% in January due to soaring copper prices.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 12, 2026
Japan producer prices rose 2.3% in January, BOJ reports
The pace of increase in the producer price index, which measures the costs of goods traded between companies, slowed from a 2.4% gain the previous month.
French President Emmanuel Macron at The Elysee Presidential Palace in Paris on Wednesday. Macron is urging European countries to prioritize local resources in strategic sectors such as chemicals, chips and tech.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 12, 2026
Macron on collision course with Germany over ‘buy European’
The French president urged European countries to prioritize local resources but German Chancellor Friedrich Merz warned that such an approach could be too narrow.
The National Diet building in Tokyo. The Japanese government's total debt as of the end of December 2025 rose to a record ¥1.34 quadrillion.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 10, 2026
Japan government debt rises to record ¥1.34 quadrillion in 2025
Of the total balance, general government bonds stood at ¥1.09 quadrillion, up ¥6.27 trillion.
Five of 10 industries surveyed saw year-on-year rises in business failures, including the services, retail, wholesale and transportation sectors.
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 10, 2026
Japan business bankruptcies hit 13-year high in January
The figure rose 5.5% from a year earlier, marking an increase for the second straight month, driven by growth in bankruptcies caused by sluggish sales.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi discusses the consumption tax cut last month before the Feb. 8 election.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 9, 2026
Takaichi’s big victory might not be mandate for big spending
Fiscal hawks in the LDP and the bond market are expected to keep a lid on stimulus spending.
Vehicles bound for shipment at a port in Yokohama. Although exports to the United States dropped in 2025 for the first time in five years due chiefly to U.S. President Donald Trump's high tariff policy, those to other parts of Asia and Europe were robust.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 9, 2026
Japan’s 2025 current account surplus hits record
The country’s combined balance of goods and services trade extended its historic surplus growth to two years.
Japanese workers’ real wages fell 0.1% from a year earlier in December, the labor ministry said Monday, extending declines to every month of 2025 amid persistent inflation.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 9, 2026
Japan’s real wages drop extends to full year as prices advance
The decline bolsters the case for Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi to continue down a more expansionary fiscal path after she secured a sweeping election victory.
Japan's ratio of household spending on food in 2025 rose by 0.3 percentage point from the previous year to 28.6%.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 8, 2026
Japan’s ratio of household spending on food hits 44-year high
Total household spending averaged ¥314,001 per month, up 4.6% in nominal terms.
Analysts say an overwhelming Liberal Democratic Party victory may in the end be positive for bonds, as it would eliminate the need for Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi ‍to negotiate ⁠with opposition parties.
BUSINESS / ANALYSIS
Feb 7, 2026
Decisive win for Takaichi may be best scenario for bonds and yen
A big win would eliminate the need for Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi ‍to negotiate ⁠with opposition parties, who are touting even deeper tax cuts and broader fiscal spending.
Voter frustration over soaring living expenses led to major setbacks for Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party in the last two national elections.
BUSINESS / Economy
Feb 6, 2026
Soaring food bills pose risk to Takaichi’s election prospects
Surveys show inflation is among the most important issues for voters ahead of Sunday’s polls, with about 54% citing it as their biggest concern, according to a Nikkei survey.
Uruguay federation reportedly cancels charter flight after World Cup exit
Uruguay's Jose Maria Gimenez reacts after the team's loss against Spain at the 2026 FIFA World Cup on Friday.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
India’s gig workers pay the price for exposure to New Delhi’s hazardous air
Rohit Kushwaha waits for a customer as he delivers his last parcel of the day, in New Delhi in January. His work as a delivery driver has helped pay the family’s bills, but has had a significant impact on his health.
Life inside Japan’s largest prison for women
Western-style rooms spanning the size of four tatami mats with hardwood floors, a toilet and soft mattresses on bed frames are designated for foreign nationals and those with health conditions at Tochigi Prison.
Yen hits 40-year low against the dollar, breaking ¥162 level
Japan's currency broke ¥162 to the dollar on Tuesday in Tokyo.
Japan’s fertility system offers few safe paths for same-sex couples
A Tokyo Pride parade participant holds a sign that says "we want to be a married couple, not a couple."
Life inside Japan’s largest prison for women
Western-style rooms spanning the size of four tatami mats with hardwood floors, a toilet and soft mattresses on bed frames are designated for foreign nationals and those with health conditions at Tochigi Prison.
Inside Japan’s rigid adoption system, a British family finds a way
James Benstead, his wife, Jesse, and their three children. Their adopted son is in the rear stroller.
A French ship with close ties to Japan combines arts and sciences on the high seas
Romain Troublé, the executive director of Tara Ocean Foundation, speaks to visitors aboard the Tara during a rare port call in Tokyo in April.
In Kyushu’s far south, Senti.U sparks a culinary destination
Chef Yasuhiko Uchida was born in Saga Prefecture but has made his home in Kanoya, Kagoshima Prefecture, since 2012.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

The Terasaka Rice Terraces are seen with Mount Buko in the background.
What Yokoze can teach Japan about rural revival
By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Digital marketer Netyear zeros in on generative AI
Digital marketer Netyear zeros in on generative AI

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER