Japan economy shrank less than estimated in 4Q

Japan's economy shrank less than first estimated in the final quarter of last year amid an increase in business investment as reconstruction from the March 2011 disasters picked up, according to AP. The Cabinet Office said Thursday that the economy shrank an annualized 0.7 percent in the fourth quarter compared with its initial estimate of a 2.3 percent contraction. Domestic spending was stronger than first estimated, in part due to reconstruction from the March 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disasters in northeastern Japan. The world's third-biggest economy has shrunk in four of the five past quarters. Its recovery from the tsunami disaster has been hampered by a strong yen, Europe's debt crisis and flooding in Thailand that disrupted production at Japanese automakers.