Japan manufacturers' business mood drops for the first time in a year

BOJ Tankan survey shows lingering gloom among large companies

The BOJ Tankan is one of the earliest and most comprehensive economic indicators in Japan and is closely followed by economists. (Source photos by Akira Kodaka and Toshiki Sasazu)

SAYUMI TAKE, Nikkei staff writer

April 1, 2024 08:57 JST

Updated on April 1, 2024 11:59 JST

TOKYO -- Business sentiment among Japan's large manufacturers has dropped for the first time in a year, hinting at the impact from shutdowns of car plants in the past few months as automakers confessed to quality irregularities.

In the Bank of Japan's quarterly Tankan survey published Monday, the headline diffusion index (DI) among large manufacturers was at plus 11 for the January-to-March quarter, compared with plus 13 in the October-to-December quarter. This compares with a median forecast of plus 10 in a Quick survey of economists.