FUKUOKA: Bank of Japan board member Hidetoshi Kamezaki said on Wednesday that a rise in industrial output backs up his view that Japan's economy will resume a recovery around the spring.
But he warned that further rises in crude oil prices amid heightening tensions over Iran could weigh on the global economy, including Japan's economy.
"Rises in crude oil prices, coupled with a reversal of yen rises, would push up energy costs for Japan, weighing on corporate revenues and private consumption," Kamezaki told a news conference after meeting business leaders in Fukuoka, southern Japan.
Figures released on Wednesday showed that Japanese factory output rose more than expected in January and companies expect further gains, increasing confidence that demand is stabilising and manufacturing is set to return to where it was before the dislocation caused by last year's natural disasters.
The BOJ boosted its asset buying programme earlier this month and set an inflation goal of 1 percent in the face of political pressure, signalling a more aggressive monetary policy to pull an ailing economy out of deflation.
A former executive at Japanese trading firm Mitsubishi Corp, Kamezaki has mostly voted with the board but has repeatedly stressed the need to act pre-emptively against risks to Japan's economy such as sharp yen rises and slowing overseas growth. His term expires in April.
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