Japanese economy will show a powerful upward trend in 2015: PM adviser

[SINGAPORE] Japan could see some "concrete movement" in its real economy in 2015, an economic adviser to Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said on Thursday, adding that inflation expectations have been rising under the Bank of Japan's monetary stimulus.

The Japanese economy will show a powerful upward trend this year, said Etsuro Honda, a University of Shizuoka professor and a prominent outside architect of Mr Abe's reflationary policies.

Honda was speaking at a seminar held in Singapore by the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) and the Japanese Embassy, titled "Abenomics: Its Focus and Further Challenges".

His remarks came after the Bank of Japan on Wednesday kept monetary policy steady by maintaining its pledge to increase base money at an annual pace of 80 trillion yen (US$678 billion) by buying government bonds and other securities.

REUTERS