Nov 19

1.  Lang-8
2.  Japan Times
3.  Anki (181-190)
4.  Eiken (Optional Speaking)

5.  Homework

Article 1

Shinzo Abe said he would consider making the Bank of Japan purchase construction bonds directly from the government as a way to tame chronic deflation if his Liberal Democratic Party wins December's Lower House election and he becomes prime minister.

Abe, who heads the largest opposition party, also said he would appoint as the central bank's next governor someone who agrees with his proposed annual inflation target of 2 to 3 percent. BOJ Governor Masaaki Shirakawa's term of office is set to expire next April.

"We would carry out necessary public investment and have the BOJ purchase construction bonds to forcibly put money in the market," Abe said Saturday in the city of Kumamoto, referring to special government-issued bonds to raise funds for public works. "We would take fiscal policy steps as well as monetary policy measures to overcome deflation at an early time."

The remarks by Abe, a former prime minister, are backed by many LDP members who have called for massive public works spending to stimulate the economy, but are considered controversial by other parties given Japan's precarious fiscal state and snowballing government debt.

Under current law, the government is obligated to cover fiscal spending with tax income but it is also allowed to issue special construction bonds for public works, for instance to fund new roads and bridges, as politicians claim such infrastructure will be used for years and insist future generations should have to bear the financial burden.

Forcing the BOJ to buy government bonds has been long considered taboo because the move caused hyperinflation and devastated Japan's economy immediately after the end of World War II.

Article 2

The government on Friday revised down its assessment of the economy in November, lowering the outlook for the fourth straight month, almost matching the dire trend seen after the 2008 global financial crash.

The economy has "shown weakness recently due to the world economy's deceleration," the Cabinet Office stated in a monthly report, pointing out that exports and production remain sluggish while private consumption and corporate investment are slowing. In October, it said the economy was "in a weak tone."

Article 3

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda will inform U.S. President Barack Obama during next week's East Asia Summit in Phnom Penh that Japan takes a positive view on joining the Trans-Pacific Partnership free-trade agreement.

Noda is aiming to accelerate talks with the Obama side on participating in the free-trade accord before the next round of multilateral negotiations is held next month in New Zealand, political sources said Thursday.

As Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers strongly oppose Japan's participation in the TPP discussions, Noda is also hoping that expressing a positive intention toward the initiative might garner the support of like-minded voters ahead of the Dec. 16 general election, the sources said.