Japan Finance Minister expects state of emergency to affect economy in first quarter

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's state of emergency over the COVID-19 pandemic will affect the economy in the January-March quarter, but it is too early to predict what will happen beyond that, Finance Minister Taro Aso said on Friday.

Japan declared a limited state of emergency in the capital Tokyo and three neighbouring prefectures on Thursday to stem the spread of the coronavirus.

(Reporting by Tetsushi Kajimoto; Editing by Christopher Cushing)