Industrial output in Japan fell 1.6 percent month-on-month in December after declining 0.5 percent in the previous month and falling more than the 1.5 percent expected by consensus, preliminary data showed. This was the second monthly decline in industrial output since May, as a worsening coronavirus pandemic and slow vaccination programs dented industrial output. The largest decreases come from business-oriented machinery (-17.7 percent), transport equipment (-17.6 percent), textiles (-12.3 percent), and petroleum & coal products (-11.6 percent). On the flip side, production of electrical machinery increased 1.1 percent. On an annual basis, industrial production dropped by 3.2 percent in November, after a 3.9 percent fall in November.