A Liberal Democratic Party executive indicated a positive attitude toward a new economic stimulus package during talks with business leaders, participants said Tuesday.
LDP Secretary General Hiroyuki Hosoda told executives of the Japan Business Federation (Nippon Keidanren) he agrees with them that steps are needed to stimulate domestic consumption and enterprises need support amid the serious economic downturn, they said.
Hosoda made the remarks as Keidanren Chairman Fujio Mitarai asked the LDP to develop a supplementary budget for fiscal 2009 to finance the new package as soon as possible after the principal budget is enacted, they said.
For the immediate future, the ruling party will strive to achieve the early enactment of the fiscal 2009 budget as well as legislation for the already-passed second extra budget for fiscal 2008, Hosoda was quoted as saying.
The LDP and business leaders also discussed expanding employment safety nets, social security system reforms and measures to counter global warming, the participants said.
