Japan June factory output climbs 1.6pc

Japan’s factory output for June ticked up on carmakers, chemical firms and others, in the latest sign that the economy was gathering steam. Industrial production in June grew 1.6 per cent month-on-month, rebounding from a drop of a revised 3.6 per cent in May, said the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. Production rose at carmakers, steelmakers and chemicals firms while output of cellphones, petroleum products and devices to make flat-panel displays and microchips fell.