Business confidence among major Japanese nonmanufacturers improved to pre-pandemic levels in December, enhanced by the lifting of a COVID-19 state of emergency, but the improvement for manufacturers paused with parts shortages causing pain for automakers, the Bank of Japan said Monday.In the quarterly "Tankan" survey, the key confidence index for nonmanufacturers, including the services sector, rose to 9 from 2 in the previous September survey, marking the sixth straight quarter of improvement and the highest reading since December 2019.The recovery in the services sector still lags behind …READ FULL ARTICLE
