Effects of Kishida's Economic Measures Reduced by Rising Prices

   Tokyo, Aug. 15 (Jiji Press)--For about three years since taking office in October 2021, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has urged companies to raise wages and focused on economic measures supporting households, such as tax cuts and subsidies to help lower electricity and gas bills.
   But the effects of these measures were reduced by the yen's sharp depreciation and higher prices brought on by factors such as monetary accommodation aimed at helping the country overcome deflation.
   "I'm proud that I've been able to deliver significant results," the outgoing prime minister told a press conference Wednesday, touting his "new capitalism" initiative, which is designed to promote the Japanese economy's transition to a growth-oriented stage. On Wednesday, Kishida made a surprise announcement of his decision to step down without running in his ruling Liberal Democratic Party's leadership election expected in September.
   Overcoming deflation has been a key policy goal of the Kishida administration. At the same time, the prime minister has strongly called on companies in the nation to raise wages in "shunto" spring labor-management negotiations every year since taking office, believing that it is important to create a virtuous cycle in which not only prices but also wages grow.
   According to data from the Japanese Trade Union Confederation, or Rengo, monthly pay increases granted by Japanese companies in this year's shunto talks averaged 5.10 pct, bigger than 1.78 pct in the 2021 shunto negotiations, before the launch of the Kishida administration, and the largest since 1991.

(2024/08/15-13:31)

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