contraction

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics the nation`s gross domestic product expanded by seasonally adjusted 0.4% in the first quarter, in comparison with a year ago and with the fourth quarter.

The first-quarter data were above economists' expectation for a fall of 0.1% on year and a climb of 0.1% quarter-over-quarter, according to a poll conducted by Dow Jones Newswires. 

The gain of Australia's S&P/ASX 200 made up 0.3% in Sydney.

The recession is said to be losing its strength as the reports on Monday show that the U.S. manufacturing sector showed improvement in May, contracting at a slower rate for the fifth straight month, while consumer spending slipped only slightly in April. The figures led the U.S. stocks up by over 2.5%.

It was revealed that Japan's economy has begun to climb out of the abyss, as a result of recent improvements in manufacturing activity. Nevertheless, the country had faced its sharpest contraction on record in the first quarter, due to the global economic slump affecting its export sector first and domestic consumers later on. 26% decline in exports resulted in 4.2 percent decrease in the nation's growth rate.