Japan’s government raised its assessment of the economy for the first time in eight months in March, but emphasised that the risk of prolonged deflation choking off the nation’s nascent recovery still lingers.
"The economy has been picking up steadily", although it "remains in a difficult situation", the Cabinet Office’s monthly economic report released on 15 March showed.
Adding the word "steadily" to describe the current expansion of the overall economy, the government offered a more upbeat view in March than in February. The upward revision was mainly due to improvements in domestic demand as well as in exports over recent months.
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(Source: The Wall Street Journal Online)