Business sentiment among workers with jobs sensitive to economic trends in Japan rose to the highest level in 16 years in December, as confidence among retailers grew toward the year-end holidays amid relatively subdued coronavirus case numbers, government data showed Wednesday. The diffusion index of confidence in current conditions compared with three months earlier among "economy watchers," such as taxi drivers and restaurant staff, rose 0.1 point from November to 56.4, the highest reading since December 2005, according to the Cabinet Office.
