Showing 1 - 10 of 10
Japanese PM Takaichi comes out on top
Oped, Taniguchi Tomohiko, Published on 11/02/2026
» Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has just scored an unprecedented victory in the country's general election. The ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which she leads, won 316 seats in the 465-member House of Representatives (the Diet's lower house), up sharply from 198. The combined strength of two parties that had merged hastily -- despite their fundamentally opposing platforms -- in an effort to bring Ms Takaichi down fell from 167 seats to just 49. The LDP, which celebrated its 70th anniversary last year, has never looked more robust.
East Asia braces for Trump's second term
Oped, Takatoshi Ito, Published on 08/02/2025
» The first two weeks of US President Donald Trump's second term were marked by a flurry of directives and executive orders.
Japan faces electoral stalemate as LDP bloc loses grip
Oped, Takatoshi Ito, Published on 01/11/2024
» Japan's general election has dealt a major blow to Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, whose ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its coalition partner, Komei, lost their parliamentary majority for the first time since 2009, plunging the country into political uncertainty.
The lasting legacy of Abenomics
Oped, Koichi Hamada, Published on 31/05/2024
» After the 1985 Plaza Accord pushed the yen's exchange rate sharply upwards, Japan's economy suffered a severe slowdown that proved mightily difficult to reverse. In fact, the only prime minister to oversee a period of consistent growth and high employment in the past three decades was Shinzo Abe, during his second term, which began in 2012.
Japan ranks 'number four' as fortunes wane
Oped, Takatoshi Ito, Published on 07/03/2024
» Harvard Professor Ezra Vogel's 1979 book, Japan as Number One: Lessons for America, became an instant bestseller in Japan. The flattering title certainly helped sales, but it was the book's central argument -- that the Japanese approach to governance and business were superior to others -- that really made a splash.
Japan's post-Abe trust crisis under PM Kishida
Oped, Akira Kawamoto, Published on 20/10/2022
» No one could have foreseen that Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's popularity would nosedive so soon after the Liberal Democratic Party triumphed in July's election to the Upper House of the Japanese Diet. Until recently, Mr Kishida's government received consistently high approval ratings. But the LDP's links to a controversial religious group, along with the costly state funeral of former prime minister Abe Shinzo, have shaken Mr Kishida's political base, endangering the country's fragile economic recovery.
Abe's death may give Japan scope to curb stimulus
Oped, Leika Kihara, Published on 14/07/2022
» The death of Shinzo Abe, namesake of Japan's "Abenomics" policy, makes any immediate challenge to his legacy highly unlikely but could eventually allow Prime Minister Fumio Kishida to phase out Abe's government spending and monetary stimulus.
Beware of Japan's 'new capitalism'
Oped, Takatoshi Ito, Published on 24/11/2021
» Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida survived the election on Oct 31, which came just weeks after his arrival in office as the new leader of the nation. Losing only 15 seats, the Liberal Democratic Party performed better than expected and will maintain a comfortable majority in the House of Representatives.
What will Japan's Fumio Kishida do?
Oped, Koichi Hamada, Published on 12/11/2021
» A month after becoming Japan's 100th prime minister, Fumio Kishida has another reason to celebrate. On Wednesday, he was re-elected as Japan's prime minister by parliament after the ruling coalition won the general election last month. The question now is how will he use this impressive result, and what his leadership will mean for Japan.
The four-horse race to be Yoshihide Suga's successor
Oped, Takatoshi Ito, Published on 25/09/2021
» Last month, I wrote, "Unless [Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide] Suga acts quickly, more lives will be lost, and his own political position may become yet another victim of the virus." This has now come to pass.