Japan Q1 GDP shrinks annualised 2.0% on weak consumption, exports

TOKYO, May 16 (Reuters) - Japan's economy contracted at an annualised clip of 2.0% in January-March from the previous quarter, weighed by sluggish private consumption and exports, government data showed on Thursday.

The gross domestic product (GDP) figure translated into a quarterly decrease of 0.5%, slightly worse than a median estimate of a 0.4% drop in a Reuters poll of 17 economists.

Private consumption, which makes up more than half of the economy, fell 0.7% quarter-on-quarter, according to the Cabinet Office. Capital expenditures slumped 0.8% and exports shrank 5.0%. External demand, or shipments minus imports, shaved 0.3% percentage point off GDP growth. (Reporting by Kantaro Komiya, Satoshi Sugiyama and Tetstushi Kajimoto Editing by Chang-Ran Kim)