Business fixed investment is recovering gradually against the background of an upturn in corporate performance--a trend evident particularly among large manufacturers. As for the export environment, the likelihood is gradually increasing that the growth rate of the U.S. economy will accelerate and that the East Asian economies as a whole will resume a growth trend.
Furthermore, business and household sentiment is getting a boost from the substantial rise in stock prices from their low levels during the early spring. Thus, it is likely that exports and production will gradually resume an upward trend, triggering a virtuous circle leading to a moderate self-sustained recovery in domestic demand.