FX.co ★ Japan Data On Tap For Friday

Japan is preparing to announce a batch of data this Friday, making it a significant day for economic activity in the Asia-Pacific region. The information set to be announced includes February's statistics for unemployment, industrial production, retail sales, construction orders, and housing starts.

Forecasts suggest no changes in the unemployment rate (2.4 percent) and the job-to-applicant ratio (1.27). On the other hand, it's predicted that industrial production will rebound, with a 1.2 percent increase after January's substantial 6.7 percent drop. Retail sales are also anticipated to see a slight rise to 2.8 percent on a yearly basis, compared to 2.3 percent increase observed in the prior month. In January, construction orders saw a 9.1 percent annual increase, while housing starts experienced a 7.5 percent decline.

South Korea will reveal its February figures for industrial production and retail sales. Experts expect to see a 0.5 percent monthly increase and a 4.5 percent annual raise in industrial production, recovering from a 1.3 percent monthly drop and a 12.9 percent yearly surge in January.

Thailand is also set to announce its February data for industrial production, current account, imports, exports, and trade balance. In January, industrial production fell by 2.94 percent. At the same time, the nation registered a current account deficit of $0.200 billion, an annual increase of 1.50 percent in imports, a 7.2 percent annual rise in exports, and a trade deficit stood at $1.10 billion.

Lastly, the financial markets in Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, Indonesia, and New Zealand will all be closed on the occasion of Good Friday.