BOJ Shirakawa: to pursue easing, mindful of yen risk

Bank of Japan Governor Masaaki Shirakawa said on Monday the central bank will continue to pursue powerful monetary easing, taking into account the risk that yen rises may hurt Japan's economy.

"The BOJ's powerful monetary easing has had some effect in stemming yen rises by pushing down interest rates," Shirakawa told a seminar in Tokyo, although he added that there was no clear relationship seen between the size of the monetary base and exchange rate moves.

The BOJ eased monetary policy for the second straight month in October as slowing global demand and fallout from a territorial row with China nudge the world's third largest economy into recession.

Data released on Monday showed Japan's economy shrank 0.9 percent in the three months to September, marking the first contraction in three quarters, keeping the central bank under pressure to offer further stimulus.

(Reporting by Leika Kihara; Editing by Michael Watson)