Economists warned Tuesday that the swine flu epidemic could hurt the already weak Japanese economy by discouraging travel and trade, and affecting stock and currency markets.
"If the effects were to last for a quarter, it would push down annual gross domestic product by 0.03 percentage point," said Kyohei Morita, chief economist at Barclays Capital Japan Ltd. "If they were to stretch out for a full year, the downward push would be 0.12 point."
Morita said the negative economic effects could include those resulting from a complete halt in travel between Japan and Mexico, where the death toll has mounted.