Japan 's economy grew at a faster pace than expected in the first three months of the year as
rising business investment and consumer spending helped to broaden an export-led recovery .
But analysts said high oil prices and the prospect of interest rate rises in the United States and China loomed as risks in the months ahead.
Gross domestic product (GDP) grew a real 1.4 percent in the quarter, beating a median forecast of 0.9 percent growth in a Reuters poll. It was the eighth straight quarterly expansion, the longest stretch since nine consecutive quarters in 1995-1997.
"Consumer spending and private capital investment were the upward surprises," said Peter Morgan, chief economist at HSBC Securities.
"This data would suggest that the economy is still looking pretty strong overall, even if it is still primarily being driven by export growth," Morgan said.
On an annualised basis, GDP expanded 5.6 percent, beating a forecast of 3.6 percent and outstripping US growth of 4.2 percent in the same period.
Robust exports of high-tech goods such as flat panel TVs and DVDs, especially from China, has spurred investment and lifted corporate profits, which are slowly feeding through into rising
incomes and more jobs.
Japan 's imports have also grown, indicating that domestic economic activity is picking up.
Domestic demand's contribution to January-March GDP remained firm at 1.1 percent after 1.3 percent in October-December.