TOKYO – A decisive election victory for Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party-led governing coalition has boosted Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s pro-business economic agenda, popularly known as “Abenomics.”
"We are extremely pleased,” Hiromasa Yonekura, the chairman of Keidanren, one of Japan's largest business associations and the voice of big business in the country, said on Monday. "Now we would like to see the necessary policies to lift Japan out of its deflation and reinvigorate the economy as soon as possible."
Jump-starting Japan’s languishing economy has been Abe’s priority, particularly as economic growth is one of the preconditions for a planned boost to eight percent from five percent. The tax hike is seen as a vital to supporting the nation's pension and social welfare programs, as well as helping lower Japan national debt, which at $10 trillion is the world’s largest.
Sunday's Upper House election result ends a period of political gridlock brought on by a divided parliament, and was seen as a test of the government’s action plan on the economy.
The government has been in favor of increasing the supply of cash - boosting spending through large public works, deregulation and tax breaks.
Even before the election, the markets expressed their approval of Abenomics - Tokyo's stock market has risen by nearly 40 percent in the seven months since he took office. The country’s currency – an important factor in Japan's export-driven economy – has fallen to a five-year low, giving manufacturers a competitive edge.
