International Monetary Fund chief Horst Koehler told Finance Minister Kiichi Miyazawa on Friday that there is no need to worry about the outlook for the Japanese economy, although Japan will experience pain as its labor market goes through a transitional period.
The IMF's managing director made the remark during 45 minutes of talks with Miyazawa, in response to Miyazawa's explanation about the state of the economy, a Finance Ministry official said.
Miyazawa told Koehler that corporate-sector activities are brisk, but this is not leading to a recovery in personal consumption because of changes in the employment system.