Japan's Dec. industrial output misses forecasts

LOS ANGELES (MarketWatch)
Japan's industrial production rose a seasonally adjusted 2.5% in December, swinging from November's 1.4% decline, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said Thursday
The result undershot expectations, however, as economists polled by Dow Jones Newswires had on average forecast a 4.0% rise for the somewhat volatile data set, while Reuters had projected a 4.5% gain
Transport equipment and machinery drove the gains, the ministry said
A survey of planned projection included with the data tipped a 2.6% rise for the current month's production, improving from a 2.4% prediction in last month's survey
For February, respondents expected a 2.3% rise