Reuters, Friday, 9 June 1995

By Yoshiko Mori

Japan Economists More Pessimistic Than BoJ Survey


Tokyo, - Japan's economic deterioration is much more serious than today's 'tankan' corporate survey by the Bank of Japan (BoJ) suggests, private economists here said.

"The tankan is bound to be a lagging indicator and I don't think it captured the recent deterioration in the economy that has just started due to the high yen, asset deflation and tight liquidity," said Richard Werner, chief economist at Jardine Fleming Securities Ltd' s Tokyo branch.

Economists predicted the next survey, to be conducted by the BoJ in August, would show a real setback in the economy.

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The tankan, a key indicator which the BoJ takes into account in managing its credit policy, appears to have endorsed the views of optimists within the BoJ, analysts said.

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"It's unfortunate. A bad tankan is what we need now," said Werner of Jardine Fleming.

"The tankan should have reflected the reality, then the BoJ would be more likely to help the economy now," he added.