A confluence of international, bilateral, and domestic conditions has made Japan’s chances with the Trans-Pacific Partnership better than widely thought. On April 23rd, US President Barack Obama met with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo. The first state visit by a sitting US president since Bill Clinton in 1996,Obama’s trip to Japan was meant…
While March’s wage hike by Japan came as a bright spot amidst growing concern over Abenomics, will April’s 3 percentage point tax hike rain on Abe’s parade? Since sweeping back into office in December 2012’s Lower House election, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has pursued an aggressive plan—dubbed Abenomics—to create a “virtuous economic cycle†of increased…
   While Japanese business has boomed under the policies of Abenomics, doubts have persisted for the average wage earner. Recent developments, however, suggest that the Abe government means business in strengthening the position of labor.             Since sweeping back into office in December 2012’s lower house election, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has pursued…
Since sweeping back into power in December 2012’s lower house victory, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has pursued a series of reforms aimed at keeping his increasingly marginalized country a tier-one power. Among these efforts, Abe’s plan for reviving the long-stagnant Japanese economy, dubbed “Abenomicsâ€, has received the most attention. In the past several months,…