Japan Govt May Refer to Deflation Concern in Nov. Report

Tokyo, Nov. 17 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government is considering
referring to growing deflation concern in its monthly economic report to be
released on Friday, informed sources have said.

The government last mentioned deflation in its August 2006 report.
Meanwhile, the government is expected to keep its overall economic
assessment unchanged in the coming November report by citing moves of
pickups, the sources said.
Recent economic data have shown mixed results. The index gauging
sentiment among so-called economy watchers took a downturn in October, but
industrial output and machinery orders rose month on month in September.
Japan's seasonally adjusted gross domestic product posted
annualized quarter-on-quarter growth of 4.8 in price-adjusted real terms,
according to preliminary data announced by the Cabinet Office on Monday.
But in nominal terms, the country's GDP shrank 0.3 pct at an annual
rate. In addition, the domestic demand deflator, a yardstick of price trends
excluding imports, fell 2.6 pct from a year earlier, registering the biggest
drop in 51 years.
Commenting on the data, Economic and Fiscal Policy Minister Naoto
Kan said that Japan may be starting to slip back into deflation.