STOCK MARKET WATCH -- Thursday, 16 May 2013

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3. Japan's first-quarter growth spurt shows early benefits of Abe's policy gamble

http://uk.reuters.com/article/2013/05/16/uk-japan-economy-gdp-idUKBRE94F00S20130516


Reuters) - Japan's economy expanded at a rapid clip at the start of the year, the first hard evidence that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's sweeping stimulus is beginning to rouse consumers and businesses into action even as risks loomed in the horizon.

Corporate investment, seen as an essential ingredient of a sustained recovery, fell for the fifth consecutive quarter though analysts expect improved business sentiment will eventually translate into more spending.

Gross domestic product rose 0.9 percent from the previous quarter, against the median forecast of a 0.7 percent rise in a Reuters poll of 24 analysts.

That translated into an annualised 3.5 percent growth, the fastest in a year, and topped a 1 percent rise in the fourth quarter, cementing a turnaround from six months of contraction in 2012.