Japan Machine Tool Orders Down 10.7 Pct in Feb.

Tokyo, March 9 (Jiji Press)--Machine tool orders received by Japanese manufacturers in February fell 10.7 pct from a year before to 124,097 million yen, preliminary industry data showed Thursday.

Orders continued to decline as companies, especially those in Japan, increasingly refrained from making fresh investment amid economic uncertainties.

Domestic orders plunged 20.3 pct, according to the Japan Machine Tool Builders' Association. Companies seem to be taking a wait-and-see attitude due to the longer time they need to wait for delivery of industrial machines.

But an association official said the results "weren't surprisingly bad."

Orders from abroad dropped 5.5 pct. Demand was relatively solid in the United States and Europe but sluggish in China just after January's Lunar New Year holiday period.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]