News & Insights

On 25 November the LDP released a document with key election policy pledges, putting focus on the economy. Even though the document sets more numerical target than the platforms of other parties, commentators point out that it does not answer some ba...

On 24 November, the embattled opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) announced its election manifesto with focus on reviving a wealthy middle class and reducing the wealth gap, effectively calling for a reversal of Abenomics, which the DPJ claims...

As PM Abe is expected to dissolve the lower house this afternoon, some differences within the ruling coalition begin to emerge over numbers. On 20 November the Nikkei noted that while Abe has indicated that he would step down if the coalition fail...

Mainichi Shinbun reports that at a meeting on 19 November, the LDP Chairman of the Research Commission on the Tax System, Takeshi Noda and Komeito’s deputy head Kazuo Kitagawa agreed on a reduced tax rate for some basic commodities, probably to be in...

In what is purportedly the first forecast for the upcoming lower house election, a Toyo Keizai article form 18 November nails the numbers for Japan’s top two parties, LDP and DPJ at 271 (from 294) and 86 (from 55) respectively, while dubbing the upco...

According to a Bloomberg article from 18 November, the upcoming House of Representatives elections in December would seek a fresh mandate for Abenomics, and more specifically for the structural reform, or the so-called “third arrow” of PM Abe’s econo...