Finance Minister Masajuro Shiokawa said Thursday that he is worried about slumping stock prices as Japan struggles to escape its third recession in a decade.
"I am very much worried about the slump in stock prices . . . and I hope they will recover toward the end of the fiscal year in March," he said at a regular news conference.
Shiokawa said he wants to consult with securities industry officials about ways to revitalize the stock market, though he said he did not have any specific steps in mind.
On Wednesday, the Tokyo Stock Price Index (Topix) fell to 977.16 at one point, dipping below the post-bubble closing low of 980.11 marked on Oct. 15, 1998.
Referring to a suggestion by an unnamed senior member of the Liberal Democratic Party that fiscal stimulus measures be adopted, Shiokawa said: "If possible, I want to take such measures. But how do we finance them?"