At the Group of 20 meeting of finance ministers and central bankers in Washington on April 18-19, a focal point was the massive monetary easing adopted by the Bank of Japan under its new governor, Mr. Haruhiko Kuroda, who was appointed by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

Participants at the meeting showed a certain degree of understanding of Japan's monetary policy. But both the government and the BOJ must realize that they have a great responsibility to carry out economic and monetary policies with utmost care.

A fear was expressed at the meeting, especially by developing countries, that Japan may be trying to increase its exports through devaluation of the yen. A concern was also aired that the BOJ's policy may lead to a large inflow of funds into developing economies, thus causing undesirable effects there.