The Bank of Japan on Monday maintained its assessment of all nine regional economies from July on the back of improving capital investment and employment conditions, despite the slump in Chinese and emerging economies.
The central bank used the word “recovering” or “recovering moderately” to describe the state of the regional economies, though exports and output in three regions including the Kanto area centering on Tokyo were dented by the slowdown in emerging economies.
The BOJ believes the impact from deceleration in emerging economies on these regions “should require caution,” but the economic assessment was not affected, a BOJ official said.
Four regions, including the Tokai region where Toyota Motor Corp. is based, downgraded their view on production, saying output had recently been “more or less flat” due mainly to the effects of the slowdown in emerging economies.
Meanwhile, eight regions lifted their assessment on housing investment, while most of the regions maintained their view that personal consumption was picking up or had been resilient as employment and income continue to improve.
BOJ Osaka branch manager Atsushi Miyanoya told a press conference that the Kansai regional economy was also supported by international tourism despite a plunge in Chinese stocks in August.
