Japan Govt Keeps Economic View Unchanged in Nov.

November 23, 2018

Tokyo--The Japanese government on Thursday kept its basic economic assessment unchanged in November, according to a monthly report released Thursday.

"The Japanese economy is recovering at a moderate pace," the government said in the report submitted to a meeting of economic ministers. The government used this expression for the 11th consecutive month.

The country's real gross domestic product in July-September shrank 0.3 pct from the previous quarter, according to preliminary data released last week.

But an official of the Cabinet Office said the decline is expected to be temporary because it chiefly reflected lower personal consumption and exports following a series of natural disasters in summer.

"The impact of the disasters may linger in some sectors such as travel, however," the official said, adding that the government will continue to pay close attention.

The government left unchanged its views on all sectors except the balance of goods and services trade. Private consumption is "picking up," business investment is "increasing" and the employment situation is "improving steadily," the report said.

As for the trade balance, the government changed the wording of its assessment to note that it has fallen into the red. "The deficit reflected a surge in crude oil prices," the official said.

Looking ahead, the November report said that the economy is expected to continue recovering, with employment and income situations seen improving. Jiji Press