Japan on Friday revised up its economic growth reading to annual 4.7 percent for the January- March quarter.

The government said in an earlier report that the nation's gross domestic product (GDP) grew an annualized real 4.1 percent in the three months.

The real GDP figure for the period is equivalent to a 1.2 percent expansion from the previous quarter, bigger than a growth of 1.0 percent reported earlier, the Cabinet Office said.

While earlier reading had already beaten average market forecast, the upgrading revealed a steady recovery from the quake- tsunami disaster in March last year, which hit the nation's export sector by smashing the supply chains of manufacturers and destroying factories.

The world's third largest economy was also battered by the appreciating yen, which eroded the profits of companies reliant on exports, and the massive flooding in Thailand that affected the production capability of Japanese manufacturers.

Due to strong GDP growth figure, Japanese government raised its overall view of economy for the first time in nine months in May. The Cabinet Office said that the economy is running on a track to recovery at a moderate pace. The upward assessment was attributed to the pickup on reconstruction demand, expanding consumer spending and exports.