Finance Minister Naoto Kan said Thursday that he and U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner agreed that fiscal rehabilitation is important when they met in Washington, saying it is a "big challenge" for Japan as well.
Bank of Japan Gov. Masaaki Shirakawa said separately in Washington that various financial regulations have been discussed to prevent another global crisis from occurring. But since the global economic recovery is "not yet solid," it is necessary to fully study the impact they could have on the economy.
Kan and Shirakawa made the remarks prior to a meeting of top finance officials from the Group of Seven industrial powers — Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States.
"We discussed fiscal and economic issues," Kan said. "Especially from my side, I told him that fiscal rehabilitation is a big challenge for Japan as well."