TOKYO - JAPAN is ready to take more stimulus measures if the deteriorating US economy continues to impact here, the finance minister said on Sunday.

Speaking on a programme on the public broadcaster NHK, Finance Minister Shoichi Nakagawa cited US consumer spending at Christmas and the fates of troubled big US companies as among factors to watch.

'These movements across the Pacific might affect Japan... It is only natural that we carry out what is necessary, including fiscal, financial and tax measures, immediately after the second supplementary budget,' he said.

The government is working on a second extra budget for the current fiscal year to March 2009 for submission to parliament possibly in January. -- AFP