TOKYO, June 4 (Reuters) - Japanese companies cut spending on plants and equipment by 25.3 percent in the first quarter of 2009 compared with the same period last year, a Ministry of Finance survey showed on Thursday, slightly less than a market forecast for a 26.5 percent fall.
The data, which is used to calculate revised gross domestic product figures due on June 11, came after a preliminary estimate showed the world's second-largest economy shrank a record 4.0 percent in January-March.
The fall in first-quarter capital spending followed a 17.3 percent year-on-year decline in the final three months of last year.
Japanese firms, which have been cutting spending on equipment and facilities for more than a year, are expected to be cautious on capital spending after a plunge in the global demand since last year. (Reporting by Stanley White; Editing by Hugh Lawson)