Japan&nbsp;aims to&nbsp;cut&nbsp;emissions&nbsp;46 percent by&nbsp;2030, significantly more than previously pledged, the country's prime minister announced Thursday ahead of a key US-hosted climate summit.

"We aim to&nbsp;cut&nbsp;greenhouse gas (emissions) by 46 percent in fiscal&nbsp;2030&nbsp;from fiscal 2013," Yoshihide Suga told a meeting hours before the discussions called by US President Joe Biden begin.

Japan's fiscal&nbsp;2030&nbsp;will begin in April of the calendar year.

The new&nbsp;target&nbsp;revises a previous goal of cutting&nbsp;emissions&nbsp;26 per cent from 2013 levels by&nbsp;2030.

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Japan&nbsp;is still heavily reliant on fossil fuels, in part because many of its nuclear reactors remain offline after the Fukushima meltdown a decade ago.

Suga last year set a 2050 deadline for&nbsp;Japan&nbsp;to become carbon-neutral, putting it on the same timeline as the European Union and ahead of China's 2060 goal.

Environmentalists have urged nations to take more immediate action ahead of the two-day virtual Earth Day summit organised by Biden.

Suga is one of 40 leaders attending the talks that kick off later Thursday, heralding a US return to the climate front lines after Donald Trump's term.

Several other countries have also announced revised targets for slashing&nbsp;emissions&nbsp;and more pledges are expected at the meeting.

Speaking before Suga's announcement, Ken Tanaka from conservation group WWF&nbsp;Japan&nbsp;said a reduction&nbsp;target&nbsp;of 45 percent was an "absolute minimum".

"Now it has set a 2050 net-zero goal in October, it is important for&nbsp;Japan&nbsp;to have an ambitious interim&nbsp;target" to achieve its long-term aim, he told.

Climate activists want to see&nbsp;Japan, which was the sixth-biggest contributor to global greenhouse&nbsp;emissions&nbsp;in 2017, reduce its reliance on coal.

"They are discussing the next energy-mix plan, and in the discussion there are still coal-fired plants remaining for the next decade," Tanaka said.

"The clear decision to phase out coal-fired plans is a critical thing for&nbsp;Japan&nbsp;to pursue."

Yuri Okubo, senior researcher at the Renewable Energy Institute, said more was still needed but the commitment was nonetheless "an important step for&nbsp;Japan" and could help build momentum for a move away from coal.

Japan aims to cut emissions 46 percent by 2030, significantly more than previously pledged, the country's prime minister announced Thursday ahead of a key US-hosted climate summit.

Japan aims to cut emissions 46 percent by 2030, significantly more than previously pledged, the country's prime minister announced Thursday ahead of a key US-hosted climate summit. "We aim to cut greenhouse gas (emissions) by 46 percent in fiscal 2030 from fiscal 2013," Yoshihide Suga told a meeting hours before the discussions called by US President Joe Biden begin. Japan's fiscal 2030 will begin in April of the calendar year. The new target revises a previous goal of cutting emissions 26 per cent from 2013 levels by 2030. Also Read | Japan adopts strike-first policy to counter Chinese aggression Japan is still heavily reliant on fossil fuels, in part because many of its nuclear reactors remain offline after the Fukushima meltdown a decade ago. Suga last year set a 2050 deadline for Japan to become carbon-neutral, putting it on the same timeline as the European Union and ahead of China's 2060 goal. Environmentalists have urged nations to take more immediate action ahead of the two-day virtual Earth Day summit organised by Biden. Suga is one of 40 leaders attending the talks that kick off later Thursday, heralding a US return to the climate front lines after Donald Trump's term. Several other countries have also announced revised targets for slashing emissions and more pledges are expected at the meeting. Speaking before Suga's announcement, Ken Tanaka from conservation group WWF Japan said a reduction target of 45 percent was an "absolute minimum". "Now it has set a 2050 net-zero goal in October, it is important for Japan to have an ambitious interim target" to achieve its long-term aim, he told. Climate activists want to see Japan, which was the sixth-biggest contributor to global greenhouse emissions in 2017, reduce its reliance on coal. "They are discussing the next energy-mix plan, and in the discussion there are still coal-fired plants remaining for the next decade," Tanaka said. "The clear decision to phase out coal-fired plans is a critical thing for Japan to pursue." Yuri Okubo, senior researcher at the Renewable Energy Institute, said more was still needed but the commitment was nonetheless "an important step for Japan" and could help build momentum for a move away from coal.

Japan strengthens 2030 emissions cut target

The sentiment index for manufacturers rose to 3 from minus 1 in the previous month, led by chemicals and manufactured food.

Japan's factory mood turns positive for first time since 2019

Japanese business sentiment improved at the fastest pace in nearly two decades in October-December, a key central bank survey showed, a welcome sign for the economy as it emerges from the initial hit of the coronavirus pandemic.

Japan business sentiment improves for second straight quarter

Japanese big manufacturers' business mood sank to a near seven-year low in the fourth quarter, a closely watched central bank survey showed, as the US-China trade war and soft global demand weighed on the export-reliant economy.

Companies expect conditions to remain unchanged or even worsen three months ahead, the Bank of Japan's "tankan" quarterly survey showed, suggesting that the fallout from the trade conflict could hurt broader sectors of the economy.

But there were some bright signs. Non-manufacturers' sentiment appeared to weather the hit from October's sales tax hike with companies maintaining robust capital expenditure plans, reinforcing market expectations the BOJ will hold off on expanding stimulus at next week's rate review.

"The tankan suggests that the economy is slowing rather than collapsing so the BOJ is unlikely to cut interest rates at next week's meeting," said Marcel Thieliant, senior Japan economist at Capital Economics.

The headline index for big manufacturers' sentiment stood at 0 in December, down from plus 5 in September and worse than a median market forecast of plus 2, the tankan showed on Friday.

It marked the fourth straight quarter of decline and hit the lowest reading since March 2013, a month before BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda deployed his "bazooka" monetary stimulus to pull Japan out of deflation.

Underscoring the pain from the trade war, an index gauging big automakers' sentiment turned negative for the first time in more than three years.

Some steel and cement makers also saw demand ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games peak, a BOJ official told reporters.

"The weakness in automakers' sentiment is noteworthy. The global economy is taking longer to recover and that uncertainty is affecting Japanese companies," said Tsuyoshi Ueno, senior economist at NLI Research Institute.

A sales tax hike that rolled out in October weighed on Japan's service sector, with the index for big non-manufacturers sliding to plus 20 from plus 21 in September. But the reading exceeded a Refinitiv estimate of plus 17.

"Domestic demand wasn't hurt much by the sales tax hike so far. Public works projects to be earmarked under the government's spending package will underpin growth," said Mari Iwashita, chief market economist at Daiwa Securities.

Big firms plan to increase capital expenditure by 6.8% in the current business year ending in March 2020, up slightly from their plan made three months ago, the survey showed. It compared with a median market forecast of a 6.0% gain.

The reading backs the BOJ's view that robust corporate spending plans will keep domestic demand firm and help the economy weather heightening overseas risks, analysts say.

"Domestic demand may slow temporarily ... though in the long-term, it will stay resilient," BOJ Deputy Governor Masayoshi Amamiya said on Thursday, adding that now was the time to stand pat and carefully watch upcoming data.

Capital expenditure has been among the few bright spots in Japan's economy as companies continue to invest in high-tech and labour-saving technology to cope with a labour crunch.

Japan's economy expanded at a much faster pace than initially reported in the third quarter, as solid domestic demand and business spending offset the pain from weak exports and output.

But many analysts anticipate a slowdown this quarter as the October sales tax hike weighs on consumption.

The tankan's sentiment indexes are derived by subtracting the number of respondents who say conditions are poor from those who say they are good. A positive reading means optimists outnumber pessimists.

Japanese big manufacturers' business mood sank to a near seven-year low in the fourth quarter, a closely watched central bank survey showed, as the US-China trade war and soft global demand weighed on the export-reliant economy.

Japanese big manufacturers' business mood sank to a near seven-year low in the fourth quarter, a closely watched central bank survey showed, as the US-China trade war and soft global demand weighed on the export-reliant economy. Companies expect conditions to remain unchanged or even worsen three months ahead, the Bank of Japan's "tankan" quarterly survey showed, suggesting that the fallout from the trade conflict could hurt broader sectors of the economy. But there were some bright signs. Non-manufacturers' sentiment appeared to weather the hit from October's sales tax hike with companies maintaining robust capital expenditure plans, reinforcing market expectations the BOJ will hold off on expanding stimulus at next week's rate review. "The tankan suggests that the economy is slowing rather than collapsing so the BOJ is unlikely to cut interest rates at next week's meeting," said Marcel Thieliant, senior Japan economist at Capital Economics. The headline index for big manufacturers' sentiment stood at 0 in December, down from plus 5 in September and worse than a median market forecast of plus 2, the tankan showed on Friday. It marked the fourth straight quarter of decline and hit the lowest reading since March 2013, a month before BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda deployed his "bazooka" monetary stimulus to pull Japan out of deflation. Underscoring the pain from the trade war, an index gauging big automakers' sentiment turned negative for the first time in more than three years. Some steel and cement makers also saw demand ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games peak, a BOJ official told reporters. "The weakness in automakers' sentiment is noteworthy. The global economy is taking longer to recover and that uncertainty is affecting Japanese companies," said Tsuyoshi Ueno, senior economist at NLI Research Institute. A sales tax hike that rolled out in October weighed on Japan's service sector, with the index for big non-manufacturers sliding to plus 20 from plus 21 in September. But the reading exceeded a Refinitiv estimate of plus 17. "Domestic demand wasn't hurt much by the sales tax hike so far. Public works projects to be earmarked under the government's spending package will underpin growth," said Mari Iwashita, chief market economist at Daiwa Securities. Big firms plan to increase capital expenditure by 6.8% in the current business year ending in March 2020, up slightly from their plan made three months ago, the survey showed. It compared with a median market forecast of a 6.0% gain. The reading backs the BOJ's view that robust corporate spending plans will keep domestic demand firm and help the economy weather heightening overseas risks, analysts say. "Domestic demand may slow temporarily ... though in the long-term, it will stay resilient," BOJ Deputy Governor Masayoshi Amamiya said on Thursday, adding that now was the time to stand pat and carefully watch upcoming data. Capital expenditure has been among the few bright spots in Japan's economy as companies continue to invest in high-tech and labour-saving technology to cope with a labour crunch. Japan's economy expanded at a much faster pace than initially reported in the third quarter, as solid domestic demand and business spending offset the pain from weak exports and output. But many analysts anticipate a slowdown this quarter as the October sales tax hike weighs on consumption. The tankan's sentiment indexes are derived by subtracting the number of respondents who say conditions are poor from those who say they are good. A positive reading means optimists outnumber pessimists.

Japan business mood gloomiest in nearly seven years as trade war bites

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Japan strengthens 2030 emissions cut target

Japan's factory mood turns positive for first time since 2019

Japan business sentiment improves for second straight quarter

Japan business mood gloomiest in nearly seven years as trade war bites