Takaichi Responds to Interpretations of Her Yen Remarks

Tokyo, Feb. 1 (Jiji Press)–Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi responded Sunday after her remarks the previous day were interpreted as suggesting her tolerance of the yen’s current weakness. In a stump speech on Saturday in Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, eastern Japan, for the Feb. 8 House of Representatives election, Takaichi said that the yen’s current weakness is “a great opportunity for (Japanese) exporters” and that the government’s foreign exchange special account is also gaining large benefits through investment. She also said the yen shot up when the now-defunct Democratic Party of Japan was in power, prompting many Japanese companies to shift their operations overseas and causing the nation’s unemployment rate to rise sharply, asking, “Is that better?” Takaichi said on X, formerly Twitter, on Sunday: “There is misunderstanding. I did not mean to emphasize the benefits of a weak yen.” “Rising prices of energy, food and other goods under the current weak yen are a challenge, and the government needs to address the situation,” she added. Yoshihiko Noda, co-leader of the major opposition Centrist Reform Alliance, criticized Takaichi in a stump speech in Tokyo, saying: “Are there any consumers who are happy to see (rising) price tags at supermarkets due to the yen’s depreciation? Are there any people from small businesses who are happy about rapidly rising material prices?” END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]