Japan's factory output shrinks more than expected as risks emerge

Japan's factory output shrank for the first time in three months in December as a decline in machinery production outweighed a small rise in autos, casting a cloud over the strength of the economic recovery.

Retail sales posted their third straight month of year-on-year gains in December as low coronavirus cases encouraged shoppers. Record infections this month driven by the Omicron variant, however, are expected to have hit consumer sentiment.
 

Factory output lost 1.0% in December from the previous month, data showed on Monday, pulled down by a decline in output of general-purpose and production machinery, including chip-making equipment and