Japan's Reuters Tankan Manufacturing Sentiment Stalls in July

Sentiment among major Japanese manufacturers held steady in July, with the Reuters Tankan manufacturing index unchanged at +13 points, according to the latest Reuters Tankan survey released Wednesday. The reading missed the consensus forecast of +14 tracked by Trading Economics. It marked the 16th consecutive month that sentiment among manufacturers has remained in positive territory. The poll, conducted from July 1 to July 10, drew responses from 218 of the 511 companies surveyed, Non-manufacturers' sentiment softened more sharply, with the index falling to +25 from +32 the previous month, as firms cited rising cost pressures and concerns tied to the Middle East conflict, The flat manufacturing reading follows a stronger June, when the index climbed to +13 from +8, with chemicals and machinery makers leading the growth. This month, the sustained positive sentiment was driven by confidence in the recovery of the semiconductor market, including in memory-related demand, "Order volumes and values are at levels we've never seen before, ​and we're concerned about production capacity," a manager at a precision machinery maker was.