Japan's economy expanded at an annualized rate of 4.9 per cent in the first quarter for the fourth consecutive quarter of growth, the government said Thursday, according to dpa. The growth in the nation's gross domestic product (GDP) in the January- March quarter corresponded to an expansion of 1.2 per cent from the previous quarter, the Cabinet Office said in a preliminary report. Japan's consumer spending in the first quarter rose 0.3 per cent from the previous period, and corporate capital spending was up 1 per cent. Finance Minister Naoto Kan told a news conference that the current recovery trend would likely continue, against the backdrop of good corporate earnings results and a global economic recovery. The GDP data "reflect a stable recovery of the economy," the minister said.
