Japan unexpectedly maintained its estimate for the economy’s contraction in the third quarter, against forecasts for a smaller drop, underscoring opposition calls for stronger measures to stoke demand. Gross domestic product shrank an annualized 3.5 percent in the three months through September, the Cabinet Office’s second estimate showed in Tokyo today, matching a preliminary reading. The median estimate of 21 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News was for a 3.3 percent drop. The government revised down the previous quarter’s figure to a annualized 0.1 percent contraction, matching the textbook definition of a ... (full story)