key takeaways
- Prime Minister Takaichi Sanae has been cautious about the Bank of Japan’s (BOJ) policy normalization, but there are growing signs that she may want to assert greater control over the bank.
- Her recent meeting with BOJ Governor Ueda Kazuo in which she may have voiced her opposition to additional rate hikes suggests a willingness to apply direct pressure that Ueda may struggle to resist.
- Meanwhile, her picks for two policy board seats reinforce the impression that she is guided by ambitions to increase government spending and is prepared to use monetary policy as an instrument in support of those goals.
Japan Foresight 