Japan's industrial production falls 4 %. in Sept.

Japan's industrial production fell 4 percent in September from a month earlier, marking the first time output here has dropped in six months, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) said in a report on Friday. According to the ministry's figures, adjusted for seasonal variations, industrial output also fell 4 percent from the previous year with the index standing at 89.9 against the 2005 base of 100 and follows a 0.4 percent rise logged a month earlier. On a month-on-month basis, September's figure came in well below median market forecasts for a 2.1 percent contraction and follows August's 0.8 percent increase. METI said that transport equipment, general machinery and electrical machinery were the industries that contributed mainly to the decrease in the recording period, with passenger cars, semiconductors and cellular phones being the contributing commodities. The index of industrial shipments fell 2.6 percent to 92.1, the government data also revealed, while that of industrial inventories was flat at 102.8. The Inventory ratio climbed 4.2 percent to 11.6 on a seasonally adjusted basis, the data showed. Following the release of the latest figures, the ministry said that industrial production "appears to be flat."