Japan's economy grows for third quarter

The Japanese economy expanded 0.3 per cent in the three months to June as businesses and consumer spending rose sharply and exports turned around.

It is Japan's third straight quarter of expansion.

The growth was below economists' forecast of 0.5 per cent growth, but investors said it was still within the range of expectations, and the financial markets reacted calmly.

The world's second largest economy, which had hit a mild recession last year, grew 0.3 per cent from the previous quarter or 1.1 per cent on an annualised basis.

Economists had projected annualised GDP growth of 2.0 per cent in the quarter.

Exports, a main driver of Japan's recovery, jumped 2.8 per cent in the three months to June after falling 0.1 per cent in the last quarter.