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Japan's economy seen to grow in Oct-Dec

TOKYO: Japanese Finance Minister Kiichi Miyazawa said on Sunday he expected Japan's economy to grow by well above one percent by the last quarter of this year, heralded by an expected recovery in consumption.

"The employment situation is seen improving after the spring, and that will lead to a recovery in household spending around the summer, Miyazawa said on a TV Asahi talkshow.

"The economy is likely to grow considerably during the October-December period," he said.

Asked if the growth rate would reach two to three percent in the period, Miyazawa said he was not sure, but added that the rate would be well above one percent, a target that the United States has said it believes Japan can exceed.

"If both consumption and capital spending improve, it is highly possible that Japan's economy will get on a recovery track," Miyazawa said. Miyazawa said U.S. Treasury Secretary Larry Summers had told him that Japan's economy had the potential to achieve annual growth of 3-4 percent.

Summers was in Tokyo on Saturday to attend a meeting of Group of Seven (G7) finance ministers and central bank governors.-Reuters