TOKYO, Dec 10: Japan’s private-sector machinery orders plunged 10.1 per cent in October from the previous month to a 14-year low as demand dried up amid a deep economic slump, the government said on Monday.

The grim news prompted an official to admit it was unlikely orders for October-December would hit an earlier target of a 0.5 per cent quarterly slide.

“Orders did not only decrease in the manufacturing sector but also in the non-manufacturing sector, including the financial and insurance industries,” said an official at the Cabinet Office’s economic statistics division.

October machinery orders, which exclude volatile orders for vessels and power generation equipment, totalled 790.6 billion yen ($6.3 billion), the lowest level since November 1987 when they came to 774.8 billion yen.

The drop came after a 13.2-per cent decline in September. Machinery orders are a leading indicator of corporate capital spending.

On a year-on-year basis, orders plummeted 26.6pc in October after an 11.8pc drop in September, the Cabinet Office said.

Orders from manufacturers fell 8.7 per cent from the previous month, while those from non-manufacturers dropped 9.4 per cent.—AFP