(Source: Jiji Press English News Service)
Tokyo, Oct. 9 (Jiji Press)--Private-sector economists became grimmer in their outlook for the Japanese economy, a monthly government survey showed Thursday.
The 34 economists surveyed cut their annualized growth forecasts for the nation's real gross domestic product to 0.87 pct on average from 1.0 pct for the July-September quarter, the Economic Planning Association said.
The economists believe that growth will not recover above 2 pct, or levels higher than the nation's potential, until the January- March quarter of 2010.
For fiscal 2008 ending next March, the economists estimate that GDP will show positive growth of 0.45 pct in real terms and contraction of 0.31 pct in nominal terms.
The fiscal 2009 forecast was put at 1.17 pct growth in real terms and 1.51 pct growth in nominal terms, meaning that the nominal rate will top the real rate for the first time since fiscal 1998 as an indication of the country's recovery from deflation.END
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