Taro Aso, the new state minister for economic and fiscal policy and information technology, said Tuesday he will make the nation's economic recovery a priority while paying due attention to fiscal rehabilitation.
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| Taro Aso, new minister of economic and fiscal policy, faces the press at the Cabinet Office. |
Japan's deficit-ridden state finances "should be rehabilitated through an economic recovery because a rise in gross domestic product means a drop in the ratio of government debts to GDP," Aso told a news conference.
"For now, priority should be given to preventing an economic downturn while keeping a rein on excessive government spending," he said.
Aso replaced Fukushiro Nukaga, who resigned earlier in the day over a scandal involving small-business insurer KSD.
Analyzing the current economic situation, Aso said the domestic economy is continuing its slow recovery, but this is hard to feel as consumer spending lacks strength.