Japan should not rely excessively on monetary easing to stimulate its economy as it could cause an economic bubble and a spike in long-term interest rates, Deputy Managing Director Naoyuki Shinohara told Reuters in an interview.

Shinohara, a former Japanese top financial diplomat tasked with overseeing Tokyo's currency policy, also said there is no change in the IMF's view that the Japanese currency is slightly undervalued against Japan's medium- to long-term economic fundamentals.

(Reporting by Tetsushi Kajimoto; Editing by Shinichi Saoshiro)