Japan averts recession in October-December period with 0.4% economic growth

Japan escaped a recession in the October-December quarter and instead grew at a revised annualized rate of 0.4 percent on strong capital spending, but weak private consumption is clouding the economic outlook, government data showed Monday.Real gross domestic product, adjusted for inflation, was revised upward from an earlier reported 0.4 percent drop, a positive development for the Bank of Japan as financial markets expect it to end its negative interest rate policy this month or in April.Despite the upward revision, Japan still lost its status as the world's No. 3 economy to Germany in 20…READ FULL ARTICLE