TOKYO: Japan on Friday published a string of mostly weak data, the first major figures since news that the world's number three economy had slipped back into recession.
A key inflation gauge showed prices fell in October from a year ago, while spending by households also dropped in a double blow for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's high-profile growth blitz, dubbed Abenomics.
The weak figures came despite signs of a tight labour market, with the headline unemployment rate at a two-decade low of 3.1 percent, down from 3.4 percent in September.
But even the jobless numbers highlight a growing red flag for the economy -- the rise of part-time work at lower wages.
"Employment is rising, but those jobs are mostly part-time," said Dai-ichi Life Research Institute's chief economist Yoshiki Shinke.
"The supply/demand balance for stable, permanent positions is not firm. As a result, we are seeing more employment in low-wage jobs."
Earlier this month, official figures showed that Japan's gross domestic product (GDP) shrank 0.2 percent in the July-September period, or an annualised contraction of 0.8 percent, marking the second straight quarterly decline.
In response to the recent weakness, Abe on Friday ordered his government to draft an extra stimulus budget.
The economy dipped into a brief recession last year after consumers tightened their belts following an increase in Japan's consumption tax, which dealt a blow to signs that Abe's bid to spur the once-stellar economy was working.
That downturn spurred the Bank of Japan (BoJ) to sharply increase its already massive bond-buying programme -- a cornerstone of Abenomics -- effectively printing money to boost lending.
While Tokyo's efforts sharply weakened the yen -- beefing up firms' profits -- and stoked a stock market rally, its impact on an economy beset by years of deflation has been less convincing.
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