TOKYO, Dec. 1 (Xinhua) -- Japanese companies' capital expenditures in the July-September quarter rose 1.2 percent from a year earlier, growing for the second consecutive quarter but slow as some were hesitant to invest during the COVID-19 pandemic, official data showed Wednesday.
The total investment in all non-financial sectors for purposes such as building factories and adding equipment stood at 10.93 trillion yen (96 billion U.S. dollars), the Finance Ministry said.
Capital spending by manufacturers went up 0.9 percent to 3.92 trillion yen (34.6 billion U.S. dollars), rising for the second straight quarter, as some of the metal product manufacturers made investments which had been postponed due to the pandemic.
In the non-manufacturing sector, expenditures gained 1.4 percent to 7.01 trillion yen (61.8 billion U.S. dollars), boosted by spending in the services sector including accommodation businesses and restaurants which are rebounding from a sharp decline in a year.
However, seasonally adjusted capital expenditures of all non-financial sectors, including the spending on software, fell 2.6 percent from the second quarter of 2021, down for the first time in three quarters.
"The results indicate the overall economy is showing weakness in the pace of its recovery in difficult circumstances amid the pandemic," a government official told reporters.
The government's preliminary data revealed the Japanese economy contracted at an annual rate of a real 3.0 percent during the three-month period, marking the first decline in two quarters.
Sales rose 4.6 percent to 323.57 trillion yen (2.85 trillion U.S. dollars), rising for the second consecutive quarter, as manufacturers of chemical products met the strong demand for semiconductor components.
Pretax profits of the companies involved in the ministry's survey surged 35.1 percent to 16.75 trillion yen (147.7 billion U.S. dollars), gaining for the third quarter in a row, encouraged by the information and communication electronics equipment sector that makes parts for vehicles.
The finance ministry surveyed 32,460 companies capitalized at 10 million yen (88,161 U.S. dollars) or more, of which 22,883 or 70.5 percent responded.
Taking into account the latest capital expenditure data, the Cabinet Office plans to release the revised gross domestic product data for the July-September quarter on Dec. 8. Enditem
