Japan PMI Manufacturing dropped to 48.9, down from 49.3 and missed expectation of 49.5. That’s also the lowest reading since June 2016. PMI Services dropped to 52.8, down from 53.3. PMI Composite dropped to 51.5, down from 51.9.
Joe Hayes, Economist at IHS Markit, said: “The resilience of Japan’s service sector to the struggles of the country’s manufacturers continued to shine through during September. As a result, it’s looking like Japan will boast what will be a robust rate of growth in the current climate for the third quarter”.
However, “anecdotal evidence further highlighted the strong external headwinds Japanese manufacturers were faced with, namely US-China trade tensions, the Hong Kong protests, Brexit and the diplomatic dispute between Japan and South Korea”. Q4 would be challenging for both businesses and consumers with the planned sales tax hike.
