Japan’s Q1 growth beats expectations
Japan's economy grew faster than expected in the first quarter, official data showed Wednesday, helped by a recovery in inbound tourism after pandemic border restrictions were lifted.
The 0.4 per cent rise in gross domestic product beat market expectations of 0.2 per cent, after hopes of a rebound fell flat in the final quarter of last year.
Spending by visitors to Japan "rapidly recovered" in the three months to March, Ryutaro Kono, chief economist at BNP Paribas, said ahead of the GDP data release.
"Domestic household spending also appears to have recovered at an accelerated pace," he added.
The world's third-largest economy fully reopened its borders to foreign tourists in October following two-and-a-half years of Covid restrictions that pummelled the economy.
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