Japan government ready to deploy economic stimulus flexibly: Spokesman

Nodding to growing political calls for additional stimulus to prop up growth,the top government spokesman said on Sunday,Japan stands ready to pump more money into the economy to ease the pain of a prolonged pandemic.

Tokyo is going into its fourth COVID-19 state of emergency from Monday tillAugust22, justless than two weeks before hosting the Olympics. It has fuelledfears of extended pain for restaurants hit by shorter hours and a ban on alcohol consumption.

In a debate programme on public broadcaster NHK,Chief Cabinet Secretary Katsunobu Kato said, "First of all, we must proceed with anti-infection measures and vaccination in cooperation with the citizens, and provide support for businesses and people in need."

"Then, we want to flexibly take economic measures without hesitation," Kato said, without mentioning the size or timing of further stimulus measures.

Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga's Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers have escalated calls for a new relief package, with party heavyweight Toshihiro Nikai saying an extra budget of around 30 trillion yen ($270 billion) is needed.

Suga, who must call a general election later this year, said on Thursday, the government wants to focus on areas, such as corporate financing, employment and restaurants, and wants to deliver as early as possible.

He said the government would respond flexibly as he was tackling the coronavirus hit to the economy with an economic package always in mind.

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(With inputs from agencies)