All four candidates in the Liberal Democratic Party's presidential election said the government’s fiscal reconstruction goal may have to be delayed to prioritize resuscitating an economy ravaged by the pandemic.

During a debate Saturday, each candidate in the race, which will effectively decide who will replace Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga as the country's leader, made their stance clear on the target to achieve a primary balance surplus by fiscal 2025.

The primary balance target, in which the government can fully cover its expenditures excluding debt-servicing costs with its own tax revenues, has become one of the hot economic issues in the campaign that kicked off Friday.