Japan Needs Full Reform, Not Just Exports
TOKYO (Nikkei)--The Japanese economy needs more than exports to pull it out of its slump, says Shigeharu Shiraishi of SG Yamaichi Asset Management Co.
"We need to cultivate forces other than exports to stimulate the Japanese economy," he says. To this end, Shiraishi sees the need for full-scale government efforts. "To realize the revival in corporate earnings as hoped for in early spring, Japan needs economic stimulus measures, including the formation of a supplementary budget, in addition to cost-cutting efforts by the companies themselves."
Shiraishi says the government needs to make bold moves and remember that its primary goal in reform is to galvanize the private sector. "With regard to the structural reform that is causing great disappointment in the market, I want the government to reaffirm its goal of activating private-sector energy. We need earnest efforts to stimulate capital spending and consumption, not piecemeal tax cuts and deregulation," he says.
Shiraishi expects the key stock indicator to drop further to 9,000 in the coming month.
(The Nikkei Financial Daily Wednesday edition) |
