The seasonally adjusted index of production at factories and mines stood at 97.9 against the 2020 base of 100, the
The ministry retained its basic assessment from the previous month that industrial production "showed weakness while fluctuating indecisively."
A ministry official attributed the consecutive decline in overall production to disruptions in output at
Of the 15 industrial sectors the survey covers, seven logged decreased output while eight saw increases.
The index of industrial shipments dipped 0.4 percent to 96.2, while that of inventories rose 0.6 percent to 101.6 for the first increase in seven months.
Based on a poll of manufacturers, the ministry expects output to increase 4.9 percent in March and to go up 3.3 percent in April.
==Kyodo
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