TOKYO - JAPAN'S GDP contracted in the second quarter as the world's second largest economy succumbed to the pressures of high oil prices and the prospects of a global slowdown.

Japan's gross domestic product, or the total value of the nation's goods and services, in the April-June period shrank at an annual pace of 2.4 per cent, a sharp downturn from a 4.0 per cent rise registered in the first quarter, the Cabinet Office said on Wednesday.

The last time GDP turned negative was in April-June 2007.

On a quarterly basis, GDP contracted 0.6 per cent from a 0.8 per cent increase in the January-March period.

The data provided further evidence that the world's second largest economy has ended its six-year expansion, and may now be perilously close to a recession.

Private consumption, which accounts for more than half of real GDP, dropped 0.5 per cent from the previous quarter.

Two main drivers of Japan's six-year economic recovery - business investment and exports - also weakened as expected.

Private-sector investment in factories and equipment fell 0.2 per cent, while overall exports of goods and services slid 2.3 per cent. -- AP