Japan Govt Keeps Basic Economic View Unchanged in April

Tokyo, April 23 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government kept its basic economic assessment unchanged in a monthly report Tuesday, saying that the Japanese economy is "recovering at a moderate pace, although it recently appears to be pausing."

The Cabinet Office made the same assessment for the third consecutive month.

By category, the government made an addition to its view on business sentiment. It maintained that current business conditions as judged by firms are "improving," but added that "some manufacturers are affected by the suspension of production and shipment by some automotive manufacturers," referring to testing scandals at Daihatsu Motor Co. and other companies.

The assessments for all other categories were kept intact.

On the economic outlook, the government said that the domestic economy is "expected to continue recovering at a moderate pace," partly thanks to large wage hikes.

It still mentioned the risk of a global economic slowdown stemming from monetary tightening by U.S. and European central banks.

On overseas economies, the Cabinet Office kept unchanged the assessment that they are picking up, despite weakness in some regions.

It upgraded its view on the Chinese economy, saying that signs of a recovery can be seen thanks to the effects of policy measures. The previous assessment was that there was a pause in the rebound.

Although China's economy had been slowing due to its sluggish real estate market, "its real growth rate rose slightly in January-March, thanks to a policy measure to promote automobile sales," a Cabinet Office official said.

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