Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda doesn¡¯t need to convince people like Kazue Shibata that deflation brings problems, but getting them to believe that higher prices will make conditions better is a harder sell.

Shibata, 65, who runs a small dress shop in central Tokyo, worries the BOJ¡¯s mission to achieve an inflation rate of 2 percent could end up driving business away unless people also have more money in their pockets.

¡°If prices rise, people might not buy as much,¡± she said, echoing a concern of many private-sector economists.