Exports rose 6.3% from the previous quarter, the biggest gain since the second quarter of 2002

Japan has emerged from its worst recession since the end of the second world war, recording its first quarter of growth for more than a year amid a rise in exports.

Japan's fledgling recovery saw gross domestic product (GDP) rise at an annualised rate of 3.7% from April to June, and by 0.9% from the previous three months, the cabinet office said.

Exports rose 6.3% from three months earlier, the first increase since the start of 2008 and the biggest gain since the second quarter of 2002.

The emergence of the world's second-largest economy from recession follows last week's news that Germany and France – the two biggest economies in the eurozone – returned to growth in the second quarter.

Freefalling global demand for the consumer durables on which Japan built its economic success – notably consumer electronics and cars – were to blame for dragging it into a recession from which few believed it would emerge so quickly.

The guarded optimism now surrounding Japan is shared elsewhere.

The US economy shrank at an annualised 1% last quarter, its smallest contraction in a year, while the 0.1% contraction seen in the eurozone was its best showing for more than a year. China's economy, helped by a vast $586bn (£357bn) stimulus package, grew 7.9% from a year earlier.

The figures appear to bear out prime minister Taro Aso's assurance that Japan would be one of the first major economies to emerge from recession, although polls suggest they probably will not be enough to save his Liberal Democratic party from defeat in the general election in a fortnight's time.

Though parts of his ¥25tn (£160bn) stimulus package were derided – in particular the cash handouts to all residents – those, together with subsidies for fuel-efficient cars and green electrical appliances, have produced at least some short-term benefits.

Experts warned, however, that the recovery could quickly fizzle out without improvements in demand at home, where falling wages and job fears have hit household spending.

Unemployment is at a six-year high of 5.4% and could rise to a record 5.8% next year. In addition, wages fell 1.7% in the last quarter, while consumer spending, which accounts for 55% of the economy, rose just 0.8% from the previous three months. Public investment, buoyed by the government stimulus, was up 8.1%.

Private capital investment dropped 4.3% from the previous quarter, while housing investment fell 9.5%, the government said.

Hiroshi Watanabe, an economist at the Daiwa Institute of Research in Tokyo, said: "When you look at the numbers, the contrast between external demand and internal demand is as clear as night and day. With payments falling, it's really hard to expect individual spending to hold up."

Still, even modest, export-led growth offers respite after more than a year of contraction that included a record 13.1% annualised drop in GDP in the last quarter of last year and an 11.7% fall in the first quarter of this year.

Yoshimasa Hayashi, the economic and fiscal policy minister, warned of continued threats to sustained recovery. "Production is still at a low level, and worries remain that employment conditions will worsen," he said. "So we must watch the downside risks."

The Asia-Pacific region has surprised many analysts with the speed of its recovery. China, South Korea, Indonesia, Singapore and Hong Kong reported growth in the three months to June.