Japan...GDP contracts at record pace in Q1

Japan's economy contracted at a record pace in the first three months of the year as domestic demand continued to slide and exports too remained weak amid a worldwide economic downturn, official data showed. The world's second-largest economy has now shrunk for a record four quarters in a row. Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Japan declined at an annualised rate of 15.2% in the January to March period, or 4% from the previous quarter, according to the preliminary data released by the Cabinet Office. The contraction marked the quickest pace since comparable data were available in 1955. The drop followed an annualized fall of 12.1% in the October-to-December quarter and a revised decline of 3.8% in the fourth quarter of last year. The official first-quarter GDP reading was still better than economists' forecast. On average, economists had expected an annualized 16.5% drop and a decline of 4.4% on the quarter.