The Bank of Japan's Tankan survey is expected to indicate that Japanese business sentiment is continuing to improve slightly. The report is due out next week.

15 private-sector research institutes have put together their projections ahead of next Monday's release of the BOJ's Tankan, or short-term economic survey of enterprises in Japan.

The Central Bank's quarterly report surveys about 11,000 companies in Japan and measures how executives feel about the economy.

Analysts predict there will be a positive score, from 14 to 20 points, on the Tankan's index for large manufacturers.

The index is calculated by subtracting the percentage of companies with negative business sentiments from those with positive ones.

9 of the 15 institutes expect the index to increase slightly, for the 4th straight quarter, from the previous survey result of 17 points.

They attribute the optimistic prediction to continued increases in Japanese exports, due to economic improvements abroad.

The demand for Japanese-made electronic parts for cars and smartphones is also increasing.