TOKYO, Nov. 18 -- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Tuesday told a press conference that he would dissolve the lower house on Nov. 21 and decided to postpone the second round sales tax hike by 18 months, in the wake of the country's severe economic situation.

The consumption tax hike was planned to be carried out in October 2015 and the prime minister said the tax hike will not be delayed again.

Abe said that Japan's economy has yet to return to the path of recovery and the first round sales tax hike had an adverse impact on economic growth.

Japan will craft an extra budget in the current fiscal year to boost consumption, he added.