Japan's manufacturers have seen a decline in demand from key markets such as Europe and the US
Japan has posted weaker-than-expected economic data, underlining the challenges the government faces as it tries to revive the country's economy.
Industrial output fell 3.3% in June, from the previous month. Compared with the same month a year ago it fell 4.8%.
Meanwhile, household spending declined 0.4% from a year earlier. Analysts had expected growth of 1.0%.
Japan has been trying to boost domestic consumption in an attempt to revive its stagnant economy.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government has unveiled a series of aggressive measures to boost domestic demand, which has been hurt in part by years of falling prices or deflation,
While falling consumer prices may sound good, they tend to hurt the economy as consumers and businesses put off big purchases in the hope of getting a better deal later on.
Policymakers and analysts have said that ending the deflationary cycle is key to reviving Japan's economy.
Earlier this year, the central bank doubled its inflation target to 2% in an attempt to boost consumer prices and spending.
There have been some indications that the steps are having an impact as data released last week showed that consumer prices rose in June, for the first time in more than a year.
Source: BBC News - Business http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-23499006#sa-ns_mchannel=rss&ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa
