Japan’s gross domestic product plummets

This is an amazing drop in GDP.

Japan's economy faced its steepest contraction on record in the first quarter, as the impact of the global economic slump spread from its export sector to domestic consumers. But recent improvements in manufacturing activity indicate that the economy has begun to climb out of the abyss, though at a labored pace.

The government said early Wednesday that gross domestic product shrank 4% in the first quarter from the previous quarter, worse than the fourth quarter's 3.8% decline, and marking the fourth consecutive quarter of contraction. The latest reading translates into an annualized contraction of 15.2%, the worst performance since 1955. . . . .