Japan’s manufacturing sector posted a further deterioration in operating conditions during January, with output, new orders and employment all registering contractions. Despite rates of decline easing markedly since December, there was evidence that the business climate remained challenging. A depreciation of the yen was reported to have led to a first increase in operating costs since April 2012. The headline seasonally adjusted Markit/JMMA Purchasing Managers’ Index™ (PMI™) recorded 47.7 during January. That was a marked improvement on December’s 45.0 and the highest reading since October. However, by remaining ... (full story)