Japan divided over EAEC

Japan divided over EAEC

TOKYO (AFP): Japan's leading business group is unlikely to reach a consensus on whether to endorse Malaysia's controversial plan for an East Asian Economic Caucus (EAEC) over the next few months, a spokesman said yesterday.

The spokesman for Japan Federation of Economic Organizations (Keidanren) said chairman Shoichiro Toyoda was therefore not likely to announce the group's support for the EAEC plan during a visit to Southeast Asia next month.

Toyoda, who is also chairman of Toyota Motor Corp., is heading a trade mission to Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam from Feb. 15, but the Keidanren is unlikely to reach a consensus before then, the spokesman said.

He added that any consensus baton Keidanren members would probably have to wait until after a second Japanese trade mission returns from a tour of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines in April.