Comments by Japanese economy minister, Yasutoshi Nishimura
In case you missed it earlier, the Japanese Q4 GDP report was an absolute stinker although GDP deflator improvement does provide some relative comfort (if you really want to look at it that way) for the BOJ and the government.
Nishimura is out saying that the economy was hit by typhoon and unseasonable weather and that the government's fiscal measures are helping the economy. Those remarks are largely trying to minimise the damage of the rather poor report.
I think they're going to be in for a painful reality check when the impact of the coronavirus outbreak dawns upon them in the coming weeks. Q1 data could be a real bad one and that will compound more worries for the BOJ during the course of the year.
