The index of Japan's tertiary industry activity fell 0.8 percent in February from January, partly affected by sluggish tourism amid fears about the war in Iraq, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said Thursday.
The index came to a seasonally adjusted 106.0 against the 1995 base of 100, marking the first decline in two months, the ministry reported.
The index on all industrial activity, a supply-side measure of economic growth, slipped 0.8 percent to 101.4 in February, marking the first drop in two months.
The overall economic condition is "still on a weak tone," a METI official said, referring to drops in the index since November. The exception was a 1.8 percent rise in January.
The transportation sector fell 1.2 percent on slumping travel and decreased air flights, METI said.
Some people in the freight and passenger transport sectors cited the negative impact of the Iraq war, according to the METI official.
The rise of 1.8 percent in January should be considered an exceptional case triggered by sales of new spring models of personal computers, he said.
The real estate sector as a whole fell 5 percent from the previous month.
In the real estate sector, property sales and brokering business plunged 26.8 percent in February from January due to a relatively small volume of condominium sales.
The electricity, gas, heat and water supply sector shrank 0.4 percent, probably because of unusually warm weather in February, the official said.
The wholesale, retail and restaurant sector as well as the finance and insurance sector increased 0.3 percent from the previous month.
Brisk sales of digital cameras and liquid crystal display TVs mainly contributed to pushing up retail sales, the official said.