Japan gets new finance minister

TOKYO, Jan. 7 (UPI) -- Japanese Deputy Prime Minister Naoto Kan, who will take on added duties as the Finance Minister, won praise Thursday from Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama.

Kan was named finance minister in the five-month-old government after the resignation of 77-year-old Hirohisa Fujii, who reportedly had been in poor health. Fujii's departure is the first major resignation of the new government.

Hatoyama, who led his Democratic Party of Japan to election victory, said, "As the best conclusion, I'll have Deputy Prime Minister Kan double as finance minister," Kyodo News reported.

"(Kan) is someone involved in (compiling) the budget, so there is no impediment -- I believe we can adequately get through the (Parliament) session," the prime minister said.

Hatoyama must get his budget of 92 trillion yen or $996 billion -- Japan's largest ever -- approved by parliament.

Fujii was one of the strongest advocates of fiscal discipline and experts feared bond market jitters after his departure, the Times of London reported, noting current state borrowing is running excessively high even as the economy struggles to recover from its worst post-World War II recession.

The report said the 63-yer-old Kan, an experienced politician, is expected to be a competent successor to Fujii.