Japanese business leader sees faster economic recovery

January 2, 2018

Tokyo- Japan's economic recovery is expected to pick up its pace this year on the back of a global economic expansion, Japanese business leader Sadayuki Sakakibara said in a New Year interview.

"I hope that 2018 will be the year when (the government) can declare an end to deflation," said Sakakibara, chairman of the Japan Business Federation, or Keidanren.

Companies need to beef up capital spending and to maintain the momentum of pay increases in this year's "shunto" labor-management spring wage talks in order to help pull the country out of deflation, he said.

He called on Keidanren member companies to positively consider a 3 pct wage increase asked for by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Each company should take the request as "a social demand" and consider it positively to reflect its own earnings, Sakakibara said.

Sakakibara, who faces the end of his term as Keidanren chairman at the end of May, said his most important task now is to nominate a successor. The announcement of a choice will be made in January or February, he said.

Keidanren is considering naming Hitachi Ltd. <6501> Chairman Hiroaki Nakanishi as its next chairman, according to sources familiar with the matter. Sakakibara assumed the post in June 2014.

Sakakibara said he will also work hard to address product quality scandals that have shaken the Japanese manufacturing industry. Keidanren has been asking member companies to look into their practices. Jiji Press