TOKYO, JAPAN - Japan's central bank chief voiced hope that Thursday's coordinated liquidity action by the world's central banks would bring calm to turbulent financial markets.

"I think this measure will contribute to the stability of international markets and the stability of the dollar," Bank of Japan governor Masaaki Shirakawa said after an emergency board meeting.

Shirakawa said the six central banks made the joint move because they believed "taking swift measures was necessary."

"The tension in international financial markets has been rapidly increasing and spreading to unexpected areas," he said.

The Bank of Japan said it would work with the US Federal Reserve on a swap to put more than 60 billion dollars on the market in Japan through January.

"This measure is not to address any shortage of dollars in Japanese banks," Shirakawa said of the move, which followed the collapse of Wall Street investment giant Lehman Brothers.