"Sales for cars as well as construction machinery are not recovering," a manager of a transportation equipment maker wrote in the Reuters poll of 485 large- and mid-sized companies, in which 256 firms replied on condition of anonymity. (File pic shows Japan car production - Reuters)
The result underlines the huge challenge the country's next leader succeeding Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will face to boost growth and corporate and consumer sentiment after the economy sunk into its deepest recession on record.
Monday's poll, which tracks the Bank of Japan's closely watched "tankan" quarterly survey, showed manufacturers' morale mirrored frail sales in key sectors such as auto and the construction industry.
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