Japanese execs unfazed by likely interest rate rise

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TOKYO, Aug 6 (AFP): A majority of large Japanese firms believe that their business can easily withstand another interest rate rise, according to a survey released today.
Fifty-six per cent of top executives at 136 major Japanese companies said "there won't be any big impact" if the Bank of Japan (BoJ) raises its key interest rate, according to the poll conducted by the Nikkei business daily last month.
Forty-six per cent said they would face higher interest payments but the financial standing of their firms would not change if the central bank raises rates.
Some analysts believe that the BoJ will raise interest rates as soon as in late August after recent economic indicators showed the world's second-largest economy is on a firm recovery track.
However, recent sharp falls in global share prices and political uncertainties after the Japanese government's upper house election defeat last month have cast some doubt on the prospects of another rate rise just yet.
The BoJ has left its key lending rate unchanged at 0.5 per cent since February, sticking to its stance of tightening monetary policy only gradually after last year's end to zero rates.
The Nikkei survey also showed that 54 per cent of respondents expect Japan's economic recovery, which is already the longest in post-war times, to continue for at least another year, up from 44 per cent in a similar poll in April.