A Liberal Democratic Party task force said Thursday that it will push forward discussions on so-called treasury stocks to help bolster Japan's stock market, panelists said.
Treasury stocks are those bought to be held by the same company that issued them -- a practice that is now heavily restricted.
During the panel's first meeting, members listed numerous short-term measures to boost the nation's stagnant share prices, including allowing firms to return injections of public funds through stocks and encouraging firms to retire some of their issued shares.
The panel will try to decide on specific measures by the end of this month, committee head Hideyuki Aizawa said after the meeting.
None of the members voiced dissent concerning the treasury stocks, Aizawa said. "We all agreed that speedy discussion on this matter was needed."
Members will further consider long-term solutions, such as tax incentives, to encourage individual investment. The panel will invite representatives from the Bank of Japan, the Japan Federation of Economic Organizations (Keidanren), and the banking and insurance sectors to future meetings, he said.
The meetings will be held throughout the month. At the same time, a project team to discuss share-boosting measures will be set up with members of the ruling coalition, Aizawa said.
No mention was made of price-keeping operations -- an emergency measure aimed at shoring up the market with infusions of public money. He said, however, that the possibility of such action had not been ruled out.