Japan Micro Business Trends (JFC)
Quarterly survey of micro businesses, mainly those with fewer than 20 employees, since 1980: business conditions, sales, profitability, cash position, borrowing, selling and purchase price DIs, the share of firms making capital investment, and the share naming each item as their main business problem.
| Indicator | Q2-2026 | Q1-2026 | Q4-2025 | Q3-2025 | Q2-2025 | Q1-2025 | Q4-2024 | Q3-2024 | Q2-2024 | Q1-2024 | Q4-2023 | Q3-2023 | Q2-2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Diffusion indexes7 | ||||||||||||||
| Business conditions DI | -23.3 | -26.4 | -20.8 | -23.9 | -23.1 | -25.8 | -19.9 | -23.8 | -21 | -23.8 | -17.6 | -19.2 | -19.7 | |
| Sales DI | -11 | -15.9 | -9.5 | -10.4 | -9.9 | -12 | -6.2 | -9.1 | -6.9 | -7 | -2.4 | 0.8 | 1.4 | |
| Profitability DI | -11.4 | -16.2 | -9.4 | -15.8 | -12.1 | -16.7 | -10.8 | -17 | -14.5 | -17.6 | -10.8 | -16 | -15.9 | |
| Cash position DI | -19.9 | -25 | -21.3 | -22.6 | -18.9 | -26 | -21.9 | -22.9 | -18.9 | -24 | -19.4 | -20.6 | -17.7 | |
| Borrowing conditions DI | -17 | -18.1 | -18.4 | -15.9 | -15.6 | -19 | -17.6 | -15.3 | -15.4 | -16.2 | -16.3 | -17.2 | -14.2 | |
| Selling prices DI | 28.7 | 22.4 | 25.4 | 24.6 | 25.3 | 26.5 | 26.7 | 24.5 | 26.5 | 22.6 | 26.1 | 27.4 | 30.1 | |
| Purchase prices DI | 76.9 | 65.6 | 69.1 | 69.2 | 69.8 | 74.8 | 72.9 | 70 | 72.7 | 68 | 72.9 | 75.3 | 74.5 | |
| Share of firms making capital investment | 12.9 | 11.9 | 14.4 | 15.3 | 13.5 | 12.1 | 14.1 | 14.1 | 13.1 | 10.5 | 13.1 | 12.8 | 13.1 | |
| Main business problems (share of firms)6 | ||||||||||||||
| Weak sales | 30.5 | 33.5 | 33.1 | 34.7 | 35.1 | 32.5 | 33.5 | 35.2 | 35.3 | 35.1 | 34.7 | 35.8 | 36.1 | |
| Falling profits | 15.8 | 18.4 | 18.5 | 17.1 | 16.2 | 18.6 | 18.7 | 16.3 | 17 | 19 | 18.1 | 16.1 | 16.8 | |
| High raw material costs | 26.4 | 17.9 | 17.7 | 17.2 | 18.3 | 19.8 | 18.1 | 18.3 | 18.5 | 15.9 | 17 | 19.6 | 19.2 | |
| Difficulty hiring | 11.4 | 13.9 | 13.8 | 13.2 | 12.8 | 13.8 | 13.9 | 12.9 | 13.2 | 14.2 | 14.7 | 13.2 | 12.9 | |
| Ageing equipment | 5.7 | 6.2 | 6.4 | 6.9 | 6.5 | 5.4 | 5.5 | 6.2 | 5.7 | 5.4 | 5.8 | 5.1 | 5.2 | |
| Other or none | 10.2 | 10.2 | 10.6 | 11 | 11.1 | 9.9 | 10.3 | 11.1 | 10.2 | 10.5 | 9.8 | 10.1 | 9.9 |
Latest reading
Business conditions DI stood at −23.3 in Q2 2026. That is +3.1 from Q1 2026 and −0.2 from a year earlier. The series on this page is quarterly and runs from Q2 1987 to Q2 2026.
- Latest
- −23.3
- Q2 2026
- vs previous period
- +3.1
- Q1 2026
- vs a year earlier
- −0.2
About this data
Quarterly survey of micro businesses, mainly those with fewer than 20 employees, since 1980: business conditions, sales, profitability, cash position, borrowing, selling and purchase price DIs, the share of firms making capital investment, and the share naming each item as their main business problem. A diffusion index (DI) is the share of firms answering 'increase' or 'good' minus the share answering 'decrease' or 'bad'. Source: Japan Finance Corporation (JFC) Research Institute.
