JAPAN'S worst post-war recession may be almost over, the central bank said Monday, while the government upgraded its assessment of the economy for the first time in more than three years. The Japanese economy is set for a 'mild recovery' & may return to positive growth in the current quarter to June, Bank of Japan governor Masaaki Shirakawa told reporters in Kanazawa, northwest of Tokyo. It would be the first time in five quarters that the economy has expanded, marking an end to its worst recession since World War 2. "The sharp deterioration in economic & financial conditions in Japan & abroad since last autumn is starting to level out and there is a prospect of a mild recovery ahead," Shirakawa said earlier in the day ina speech. Japan announced last week that its economy suffered its sharpest contraction on record in the three months to March, shrinking 4.0 parcent quarter, but hopes are growing that the worst is over. The government on Monday upgraded its assesment of the world's second largest economy for the first time in more than three years. 'While the economy is in a difficult situation, the tempo of worsening has become moderate,' the Cabinet Office said in a monthly report. 'Exports & industrial production are nearing the bottom,' it said. At the same time corporate profits are falling sharply & business investment is declining, it said. 'The employment situation, which is worsening rapidly, is severe. Private consumption is decreasing moderately. With worsening employment situation, the economy is likely to remain severe for the time being,' it added. The government follows the central bank in upgrading its assessment of Asia's largest economy. On Friday the BoJ raised its view for the first time in almost three years, saying the recession appeared to be easing. The BoJ also painted a more positive picture of the outlook in its monthly economic report released on Monday, saying that the pace of deterioration in Japan's economic conditions was 'likely to moderate gradually.'
---NEW AGE
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