Japan's industrial production dropped a record 15.5 percent in March from a month earlier, after adjustments were made for season variations, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said in a report on Thursday.
The government downwardly revised the preliminary industrial figure from a 15.3 percent drop in March from a month earlier to a 15.5 percent drop, once tobacco and food production could be taken into account following the March 11 disasters.
The index of output at factories and mines stood at 82.7 against the base of 100 for 2005, according to METI's latest figures.
On a year-on-year basis, the government data showed a 13.1 percent fall in the recording period.
The revised report, which now comprises data previously not available to the government at the time due to the affects of the quake and tsunami, shows that in March all sectors that make up the factory output index fell and based on the latest figures the government downgraded its assessment on the country's factory output.
"Industrial output dropped sharply due to the Great East Japan Earthquake but it is expected to recover gradually," the government said, from a previous assessment made a month earlier stating that industrial production was "continuing to show an upward movement."
The latest figures show that the output of transportation machinery, including automobiles, dropped to a revised 46.7 percent from a preliminary 46.4 percent and industrial shipments dropped a revised 14.6 percent from a month earlier, compared to a preliminary 14.3 percent, METI said.
The government data also showed that the food and tobacco sector, not included in the preliminary report, plummeted 8.7 percent from a month earlier.