Mr Aso, an ardent fan of Japanese 'manga' comics, made his first public speech on the streets of Akihabara, Tokyo's biggest electronics district and the center of manga and anime geeks known as 'otaku'.
TOKYO - JAPAN'S Prime Minister Taro Aso on Monday denied a newspaper report that said he had decided to put off an election for now.
The Nikkei financial newspaper reported that Mr Aso had told an aide he would not be dissolving parliament for some time.
'I didn't give any instructions or make that phone call', Mr Aso told reporters. 'I don't think anyone got such a call from me yesterday'.
Mr Aso had been widely expected to call a snap poll after taking office in September in an attempt to renew the ruling coalition's mandate and resolve a policy deadlock with the opposition-dominated upper house of parliament.
But he is not required to hold an election for almost a year and has said in recent weeks he wants to focus on the financial crisis and Japan's troubled economy rather than politics.
Japan's benchmark Nikkei stock average slid to a 26-year intraday low on Monday and exporters were hurt by the rapid rise of the yen against other currencies.
Finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of Seven said in a joint statement on Monday they were concerned about excessive volatility in the yen and the possible adverse implications for economic and financial stability.
A poll published in the Nikkei newspaper the same day showed Mr Aso's popularity had fallen, in line with other recent surveys.
Support for his cabinet was at 48 per cent in a poll carried out from Oct 24-26, the paper said, down 5 per cent on the previous poll held just after he took office.
But a majority of those polled agreed with Mr Aso's policy of focusing on economic measures rather than calling an election.
About 63 per cent said the economy should be the top priority, while 29 per cent said the election should come first, the Nikkei said.
'I think the idea of putting policies ahead of politics is the right one', top government spokesman Takeo Kawamura told reporters. 'Japan's economic problems are not just domestic, but something affecting the whole world, and Japan needs to play a central role'.
Respondents also said they saw Mr Aso as more suitable to be prime minister than Mr Ichiro Ozawa, the leader of the main opposition Democratic Party, the paper said.
Thirty-six per cent said they favoured Mr Aso, while only 16 per cent said Mr Ozawa was the most suitable candidate.
The random telephone poll involved 1,503 households and obtained 947 responses, the paper said. -- REUTERS
