Japan's economy contracted in the September quarter, as a global economic slowdown and anti-Japanese protests in China hurt its exports, while domestic consumption remained subdued.
Gross domestic product contracted 3.5% from a year earlier, the ABC reports.
Compared with the previous three months, the economy contracted 0.9%.
The weak data is likely to put pressure on the government to boost stimulus measures to spur growth.
Japan's economy, the world's third-largest, has been trying to recover from last year's earthquake and tsunami, which caused widespread destruction.
