Senior members of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party on Friday increased the pressure on Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi to reload the public works budget, expressing doubts about the government's decision the previous day to upgrade its economic assessment.

"The U.S. economy is going increasingly out of order and there are many worrying factors concerning the prospects for the Japanese economy," Kabun Muto, a former director general of the Management and Coordination Agency, said during a meeting of the LDP General Council.

Muto said the government needs to take additional stimulus measures to "ensure a self-sustaining recovery" of the Japanese economy.