Abe vows to push easing in Japan
Source: Agencies |
March 1, 2013, Friday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
JAPAN'S Prime Minister Shinzo Abe vowed to push ahead with more aggressive monetary easing as he yesterday nominated Haruhiko Kuroda to head the country's central bank.
The current Bank of Japan governor, Masaaki Shirakawa, will step down on March 19, three weeks before his term is due to end. The nomination of 68-year-old Kuroda, an Oxford-educated former vice minister of finance, was widely expected. He is currently president of the Asian Development Bank. A parliamentary vote on Kuroda's appointment is due next month.
Abe is counting on Kuroda's support to help Japan escape from a long, debilitating bout of deflation that he says is hindering consumer spending and corporate investment.
Bolder monetary easing is one of Abe's "three arrows" or main strategies, for helping salvage the ailing economy. The central bank under Shirakawa was reluctant to embrace Abe's monetary push and it emphasized that Japan's economy has deep seated problems that the central bank alone can't solve.
In a speech to the parliament yesterday, Finance Minister Taro Aso pledged more drastic measures to help revive growth. "Deflation is a deep-rooted problem that has undermined the Japanese economy" as it has "hampered investment toward the future," said Aso, noting that Japan is not the only country grappling with weak demand and an aging population.
Despite frequent central bank interventions in the currency markets, the yen has strengthened significantly over the past decade.
The current Bank of Japan governor, Masaaki Shirakawa, will step down on March 19, three weeks before his term is due to end. The nomination of 68-year-old Kuroda, an Oxford-educated former vice minister of finance, was widely expected. He is currently president of the Asian Development Bank. A parliamentary vote on Kuroda's appointment is due next month.
Abe is counting on Kuroda's support to help Japan escape from a long, debilitating bout of deflation that he says is hindering consumer spending and corporate investment.
Bolder monetary easing is one of Abe's "three arrows" or main strategies, for helping salvage the ailing economy. The central bank under Shirakawa was reluctant to embrace Abe's monetary push and it emphasized that Japan's economy has deep seated problems that the central bank alone can't solve.
In a speech to the parliament yesterday, Finance Minister Taro Aso pledged more drastic measures to help revive growth. "Deflation is a deep-rooted problem that has undermined the Japanese economy" as it has "hampered investment toward the future," said Aso, noting that Japan is not the only country grappling with weak demand and an aging population.
Despite frequent central bank interventions in the currency markets, the yen has strengthened significantly over the past decade.
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