Japan's central bank raises views of 4 regional economies as activities pick up

TOKYO, Jan. 12 (Xinhua) -- The Bank of Japan (BOJ) has upgraded its assessments for four of the country's nine regional economies with a pickup in activity helped by the lifting of antivirus restrictions in the four regions.

Areas that were upgraded included Hokuriku, Kyushu-Okinawa, Kanto-Koshinetsu, which includes Tokyo, and Kinki, which includes the major cities of Kyoto, Osaka and Nara.

Japan's central bank said in its quarterly report that many of the country's regional economies are "picking up" or "picking up moderately," although soaring inflation could take its toll looking ahead.

The pickup has been buoyed by an increase of activities despite the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the easing of supply constraints, according to the report.

The quarterly report also showed that five other regions, including Hokkaido, Tohoku, Tokai, Chugoku and Shikoku, had their assessments maintained.