TOKYO, Nov 15 (Reuters) - Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda said on Monday the country’s economy was likely to recover to pre-coronavirus pandemic levels in the first half of 2022. “The economy’s recovery has been somewhat slower than initially expected,” Kuroda said in a speech at a meeting with business leaders in Nagoya, central Japan. “But the mechanism for an economic recovery remains intact,” he said, according to the text of the speech posted on the BOJ’s website. (Reporting by Leika Kihara Editing by Chang-Ran Kim)