Information Releases

February. 2023

Economic Trends Research, February 2023

Domestic economy at a standstill- insufficient price pass-through
— Amidst labor shortages and rising prices for daily necessities, gaps between regions widen —

Trends in February 2023: Standstill

The economic diffusion index (DI) in February 2023 was 42.1, the same as the previous month. The domestic economy remains at a standstill with insufficient progress in price pass-through and continued labor shortages.

Future outlook: Generally continued tendency to plateau

Although the outlook is bearish with many factors that could cause a downturn, the present forecast is a generally continued tendency to plateau.

Primary points of survey results(summary)

1. 1 By industry: Improvement in 5 industries in spite of the harsh environment surrounding corporations, including a jump in purchase prices.
2. 2 By size: Although “small and medium-sized corporations” saw an improvement for the first time in 3 months, price increases and high costs exerted downward pressure.
3. 3 By region: Economic conditions worsened in 5 out of 10 regions, with the between-region gap widening to 7.6 points.

Economic Trends Research, February 2023