Tokyo, Oct. 31 (Jiji Press)--The Japanese government is expected to continue cautiously considering whether to declare that the country has fully emerged from deflation, despite the Bank of Japan's announcement Friday that underlying inflation has reached its 2 pct target.

Opposition parties have called on the government to adopt a clearer stance on tackling inflation. Democratic Party for the People leader Yuichiro Tamaki said that it should "promptly" declare that Japan has come out of deflation.

"The economy must not only have emerged from a situation of sustained price drops but also be in a condition where we can determine that there is no prospect of returning to such a situation," Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said when asked about a possible declaration at a press conference Friday, reiterating the government's long-held view. "Our position that the matter needs to be judged carefully remains unchanged."

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said in July that the government was "not in a position to say the deflation had been ended."

Some officials close to the prime minister have questioned the value of such a declaration, saying it "would have little meaning." The government is instead focusing on measures to tackle rising prices stemming from the Middle East turmoil and other factors.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara holds a press conference at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Friday.
Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi attends a cabinet meeting at the prime minister's office in Tokyo on Friday.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]