Ex-BOJ Deputy Governor Likely to Join Govt Advisory Panel

Tokyo, Nov. 7 (Jiji Press)–The Japanese government is considering appointing Masazumi Wakatabe, who served as Bank of Japan deputy governor when then Prime Minister Shinzo Abe promoted his “Abenomics” reflationary policy mix, as a private member of the Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy, informed sources have said. Wakatabe, now a professor at Waseda University, is known for advocating aggressive monetary easing and was a vocal supporter of the BOJ’s stimulus measures under then Governor Haruhiko Kuroda. Only Yoshinobu Tsutsui, chairman of the Japan Business Federation, the country’s biggest business lobby also known as Keidanren, is expected to remain in office among the council’s four private-sector members, the sources said Thursday. The government plans to replace the remaining members by inviting experts who support fiscal stimulus and monetary easing in a bid to promote an “aggressive yet responsible fiscal policy” pursued by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi. The government also plans to appoint Toshihiro Nagahama of Dai-ichi Life Research Institute and the head of a private company as private-sector members. In 2023, Nagahama was invited to the council as an expert and called for a growth strategy driven by fiscal policy. The new members will be officially appointed soon, with the first meeting under the Takaichi administration expected as early as next week. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]