Japan's all industry activity declined 1.4 percent in January from the prior month due to a fall in the tertiary industry, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said Thursday.
The rate of decline reversed last month's 1.6 percent increase and slightly larger than the 1.3 percent drop forecast by economists.
Data showed that tertiary industry activity fell 1.1 percent, completely offsetting the 1.1 percent rise logged in December.
Meanwhile, construction industry activity grew 3.5 percent and industrial output rose marginally by 0.3 percent. At the same time, the indices of government services advanced 0.9 percent.
On a yearly basis, the all industry activity index slipped 0.5 percent, following a 1 percent drop in December.
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