Economic activity in Japan continued to decline in August. This was shown on Monday by preliminary figures from Markit Economics.
The composite Purchasing Managers Index for Japan fell from 48.8 in July to 45.9 in August.
The Purchasing Managers Index for the service sector fell from 47.4 to 43.5. The industry index also fell from 53.0 to 52.4, but still indicated growth.
An index position greater than 50 indicates growth, while less than 50 means contraction.
The shrinkage there is quite strong, 45 is just low, if the infection rates continue to rise, the country could fall into an overshoot, the emergence of a new “Japanese feast week” of which there are already some per year.
