New Finance Minister Fukushiro Nukaga gave a cautious assessment of the economy and urged the Bank of Japan to work with the government to ensure continued growth.
"I don't think Japan's economy has fully taken off (from a decade-long slump)," he said in an interview this week with reporters following Monday's Cabinet reshuffle. "I expect the central bank's monetary policy to be consistent with the government's economic policy."
His cautious assessment came at a time when the central bank is widely expected to raise a key interest rate before the end of the year.