The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) Secretary General Donald Johnston said on March 25 that the Japanese economy should benefit from expected robust growth in the U. S. and China, Japan's key export markets. Growth in the U.S. economy appeared to be "quite robust" while China, Japan's largest trading partner, was forecast to maintain growth of around 8.0-9.0% through to 2010, he said.
"As far as the Japanese economy is concerned, consumer confidence seems to be returning to provide growth," he said, adding: "No one is predicting strong growth in Japan but certainly growth." OECD has forecast Japanese economic growth of around 1.5% for 2005 and 2006.
Official data showed that Japan's gross domestic product (GDP) grew 2.7% in inflation adjusted terms in 2004 after rising 1.4% in 2003. Japan slipped into a mild recession in the middle of last year but crawled out in the last quarter of 2004, with GDP growing 0.1% from the three months to September, or an annualized 0.5%.
Copyright Agence France-Presse, 2005
