Hit hard by reduced business with China, Japan's trade deficit last month was the nation's widest for October in more than 30 years. "There's no doubt that Japan's economy is already in a recession; political pressure for further monetary easing is building, and we expect the [Bank of Japan] to take additional measures in January," said Kiichi Murashima, chief economist at Citigroup in Tokyo. However, the central bank's governor criticized recent calls by the leader of Japan's main opposition party for more monetary easing.