Japan Q2 Real GDP Up 0.5%... Impact of Lifting COVID-19 Restrictions

Pedestrians wearing masks are gathered in front of a crosswalk in downtown Tokyo, Japan. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Chunhee Lee] Japan's real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) for the second quarter (April to June) of this year increased by 0.5% (seasonally adjusted) compared to the first quarter.

The Cabinet Office of Japan announced this preliminary figure on the 15th. Assuming this trend continues for a year, the annualized growth rate was 2.2%. This falls short of the 2.74% annualized forecast by private economists announced by the Japan Center for Economic Research on the 10th.

Japan's real GDP recorded growth for three consecutive quarters starting from the fourth quarter of last year. As the Japanese government lifted all the "Priority Measures to Prevent the Spread of Disease," an emergency measure restricting economic actors' activities to some extent to curb the spread of COVID-19, from late March, consumption increased, driving GDP growth. Personal consumption, which accounts for more than half of GDP, rose by 1.1% in the second quarter.

The annualized amount of GDP in the second quarter was 542 trillion yen (approximately 5297 trillion won), surpassing the annualized amount of 540 trillion yen in the fourth quarter of 2019 before the spread of COVID-19 for the first time. The nominal GDP for the second quarter increased by 0.3% (1.1% annualized).