Japan's 1st Quarter GDP Growth Expected to Be on Higher Growth

Analysts are expecting the Japanese government will raise its estimated gross domestic product figure for the January to March quarter. 
Preliminary figures announced last month showed the Japanese economy expanded by 0.4% in real terms from the previous quarter. This translated to 1.7% annual growth, according to Japan's (NHK WORLD) radio. 
The government will announce a revised figure on June 8. 
Twelve private-sector research firms and financial institutions are now predicting the growth rate will be between 0.3 to 0.7%. The new figures translate to annualized growth between 1.4 to 2.6%. 
Nine out of the twelve institutions are projecting upward revision. They say this is due to improvement in corporate capital investment based on the Finance Ministry's survey issued last Wednesday. 
However, many analysts are not so optimistic about the economy. They say personal consumption was pushed up by the leap year day in February.