Japan's economy grew 3.7 percent on an annualized basis from April to June this year, the first time the world's second largest economy has seen positive growth in 15 months. The announcement of preliminary figures by Japan's Cabinet Office comes after France and Germany surprised economists last week by posting 0.3 percent growth for the second quarter of the year, CNN reported. The news that Japan has rebounded -- the hardest hit of the major economies because of its reliance on exports -- gives economists cautious optimism that the worst of the global recession is over. Japan's GDP grew just under 1 percent during the three-month period and trade increased 1.6 percent. The uptick marks the end of the worst recession in Japan since the end of World War II. Japan's GDP fell at a record pace during the January-March quarter, when GDP was 15.4 percent lower than the same time period last year. The Japanese economy was buoyed by a historic ¥15 trillion ($150 billion) stimulus package in May, which included unemployment benefits, aid to struggling companies, promotion of green industries and a variety of tax breaks.
