70% Of Firms Expect The Japanese Economy To Grow In 2024

More than 70% of major Japanese firms expect the domestic economy to grow in 2024, believing solid consumer and capital spending will overcome the impact of inflation, according to a Kyodo News survey.

In the survey of 113 companies, including Toyota Motor Corp. and SoftBank Group Corp., 72 percent said they expect moderate growth, and 1% see solid expansion in 2024. I Photo: Toyota

This underlines more optimistic corporate sentiment compared to a year earlier.

In the survey of 113 companies, including Toyota Motor Corp. and SoftBank Group Corp., 72 percent said they expect moderate growth, and 1% see solid expansion in 2024.

The combined 73% is higher than a year before when 56% said they expected moderate or solid growth, even as soaring raw material and energy prices presented significant risk factors, as reported by Mainichi Shimbun.

The upbeat view coincides with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) growth projection for Japan of 1% in 2024, a slower pace than the 1.7% estimated for 2023. Some 62 percent said capital spending should pick up.

In the semiconductor sector, for example, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. is building an $8.6 billion plant in Kumamoto Prefecture, and Rapidus Corp. plans to construct a cutting-edge chip plant in Hokkaido. No company expects a recession this year.

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