Japanese manufacturers are accelerating efforts to mitigate the economic impact of a massive earthquake forecast to occur in the Nankai Trough off the country's Pacific coast.

Last week, the government released a report on possible damages from the Nankai quake, which said up to 298,000 people could be killed due to a tsunami and building collapses in the event of an earthquake of around magnitude 9. It also said the quake is projected to cause economic damages worth ¥292.2 trillion.

In a separate estimate by the Cabinet Office, the government said the quake will push down domestic production and services by up to ¥45.4 trillion, nearly half of which will come from the automobile and other manufacturing industries.