Taro Saito Trend Quotations

Japan's overall consumer spending is pretty firm as a trend because wages are rising.

We believe that the underlying trend of exports to Asia remains solid and exports will continue to be a key growth driver for the overall Japanese economy.

With exports now recovering and domestic demand rising steadily, production activity is likely to maintain its rising trend in the near-term.

With export demand now recovering following the completion of IT inventory adjustments in 2005 and domestic demand expanding solidly, production is likely to continue its rising trend in the near-term, even if there are some monthly fluctuations.

Amid the continued recovery of corporate activity, which reduces anxiety about job security, Japanese consumers seem to be increasingly willing to spend more, and that trend is most likely to be sustained going forward.