Japan’s GDP Contracts 3.5%

“Japan’s economy contracted in the third quarter at the fastest pace since last year’s earthquake as exports slumped and consumer spending slid.

Gross domestic product fell an annualized 3.5 percent in the three months through September, after a revised 0.3 percent gain the previous quarter, the Cabinet Office said in Tokyo today. The median of 23 estimates in a Bloomberg News survey was for a 3.4 percent drop. Barclays Plc and Societe Generale SA are among those forecasting another decline this quarter, meeting the textbook definition of a recession.”

Full article