March manufacturers index +8 vs +6 in February

  • March non-manufacturers index falls to -1 from +3 in February and to a 5-month low
  • Manufacturers June index seen at +11, non-manufacturers +10

More from the Reuters report:

  • Japanese manufacturers' business confidence improved for the first time in three months in March
  • automakers became less pessimistic
  • firms feared a fresh surge in energy prices due to the Ukraine crisis
  • mood among manufacturers remained positive for the 14th straight month
  • managers voiced concerns about a wide array of downside risks that cloud the outlook for the world's third-largest economy, days before the BOJ's next policy meeting. "It's a quadruple whammy," said a machinery maker manager in the poll, referring to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, a hit to output from Omicron infections, supply disruptions and soaring costs on everything from high-tech chips to transportation.

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The Reuters poll tracks the Bank of Japan's (BOJ) "tankan" quarterly survey.