Kansai Economic Insight Monthly Vol.77 (September 2019)
Summary: Further economic deterioration in sight
▶ Production in July expanded MoM for the first time in two months.
▶ Although Kansai logged a trade surplus in August, the total trade volume kept declining. The slowdown of the Chinese economy had a major negative impact. In contrast, the impact of trade tensions with Korea remains limited to individual firms.
▶ The Economy Watchers’ Diffusion Index (DI) in August improved MoM for the first time in four months.
▶ Nominal wages in June increased in Shiga, Hyogo and Kyoto, but declined in Nara and Wakayama.
▶ Sales by large retailers in July fell below last year’s level for the first time in three months.
▶ Housing construction expanded due to rush demand, but the increase was modest compared to the one seen before the previous tax hike in 2014.
▶ The effective job offers-to-applicants ratio in July declined slightly. The unemployment rate declined to 2.4%.
▶ July was the 17th month of uninterrupted YoY growth in public construction works.
▶ The number of international arrivals at Kansai International Airport in August grew YoY for the 11th consecutive month. However, growth decelerated to +4.9% (from +15.5% in July) due to the deterioration in Korea-Japan relations.
▶ China’s economic slowdown become more evident in August. Car sales kept declining (-8.1% YoY), and investment in the industrial sector decelerated significantly. China’s total trade volume shrank for the fourth consecutive month.