Tokyo

DEFYING the pessimism and near- panic gripping stock and currency markets in recent days, Bank of Japan (BOJ) governor Haruhiko Kuroda has claimed that China's economy can maintain 6 to 7 per cent annual growth, and that the slowdown in the world's second largest economy is unlikely to harm Japan's exports seriously.

Speaking at a seminar in New York, he displayed his trademark optimism, insisting that the BOJ can achieve its 2 per cent annual inflation target next year on the basis of current monetary easing initiatives - although he did not rule out further easing by the Japanese central bank if this was called for.