Summary Box: Japan industrial output falls
STILL UNCERTAIN: Weaker than expected factory production in Japan — a 1.2 percent drop for February— has underscored the fragility of the nation's economic recovery as growth throughout Asia slows.
EXPORT DEMAND FALLS: Weaker sales abroad produced the first decline in industrial production in the world's third-largest economy in three months, the government said Friday. Employment and consumer confidence improved modestly.
HOW MARKETS REACTED: The news cast a pall over markets in Asia that already were jittery over the announcement planned for Sunday of key Chinese economic indicators. Japan's Nikkei 225 index fell 0.3 percent to 10,083.56.
