Looking at movements by major region, the U.S. economy has been on a recovery trend, assisted by household spending. Amid the steady increase in employment on the whole, private consumption has been increasing steadily, although the pace has been slowing somewhat. Housing investment has followed a moderate uptrend.
As for the outlook, the manufacturing sector is likely to remain lackluster for the time being, due mainly to the slowdown in emerging economies, but the economy is expected to continue its recovery centered on the private sector, supported by the firmness in household spending, under accommodative financial conditions. The euro area economy has continued to recover moderately.