Japan finance minister - Fed decision likely reflected voice of emerging economies

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japanese Finance Minister Taro Aso said on Friday that the U.S. decision to hold interest rates steady probably reflected opinions voiced by emerging economies at a recent G20 meeting that rapid U.S. rate hikes could cause other economies to slump.

Aso said low U.S. rates and outflow of capital into emerging economies have supported their growth since the global financial crisis, and that some countries are concerned about a capital flight that would be caused by rapid U.S. rate hikes.

He was speaking to reporters after a cabinet meeting.

The U.S. Federal Reserve kept interest rates unchanged on Thursday in a bow to worries about the global economy, financial market volatility and sluggish inflation at home, but left open the possibility of a modest policy tightening later this year.

(Reporting by Tetsushi Kajimoto; Editing by Chang-Ran Kim)