Business leaders urge new Cabinet to take policy actions promptly

Selasa, 02 Oktober 2012 12:56

(TOKYO-Kyodo) Japanese business leaders Monday expressed hope that the new Cabinet of Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda will take action quickly to deal with pressing issues, such as election system reform and enacting legislation allowing the government to issue deficit-covering bonds before it runs short of money.

Hiromasa Yonekura, chairman of the Japan Business Federation, called on the premier to dissolve the House of Representatives soon, saying in a statement that Noda "should seek to test his public mandate" as he agreed to do with the opposition Liberal Democratic Party and New Komeito.

Yonekura, head of the business lobby known as Keidanren, also said the cabinet should deepen cooperation with opposition parties, as the nation is currently in "an extremely difficult phase" in the wake of the March 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake, and facing a variety of economic, energy, diplomatic and security matters.

Yasuchika Hasegawa, chairman of the Japan Association of Corporate Executives, urged the government to decide to participate in negotiations for creating a Trans-Pacific Partnership free trade agreement, saying "there is no time left to postpone a decision."

Toyota Motor Corp. President Akio Toyoda said in a statement as chief of the Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association that the territorial dispute that ignited recent anti-Japan demonstrations in China was beginning to have widespread repercussions.

"The negative impact from the China issues is spreading to the entire Japanese economy, including the automobile industry, as well as citizens' lives and cultural exchanges." He called on the government to work hard on settling the issues.