Top Choice for Japan's Next Prime Minister
A recent survey by Reuters revealed that Shigeru Ishiba, a former defense minister and secretary-general of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), is the top choice among corporate leaders to replace Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. This puts him ahead of Sanae Takaichi, who is vying to become Japan's first female premier.
The LDP is set to hold a leadership election on September 27th, with the winner becoming the next prime minister due to the party's control of parliament. Kishida has opted not to run in the race.
The new leader will face several key challenges, including leading the LDP to victory in a potential lower house election this year and collaborating closely with the next US president amidst China's growing economic and military influence.
Ishiba emerged as the preferred candidate for 24% of respondents, compared to 22% for Takaichi and 16% for Shinjiro Koizumi, the son of former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi. While Ishiba generally enjoys higher public approval ratings, Koizumi tends to be more popular among LDP supporters.
Ishiba's experience includes cabinet positions in agriculture, local economy revival, defense, and LDP policy chief. The 67-year-old former banker has prioritized achieving a clear exit from deflation and encouraging public and private sector investments in growth areas.
"He has a wealth of experience. He seems to be the kind of person who will press ahead with reforms without paying heed to party factions," commented a manager at a food company participating in the survey.
Takaichi, 63, advocates for strategic fiscal spending in cutting-edge technologies to drive economic growth. Koizumi, who would become Japan's youngest-ever leader if elected, plans to largely continue Kishida's economic policies.
Kishida focused on boosting household income by encouraging businesses to raise wages and laid the groundwork for the Bank of Japan to phase out its radical monetary stimulus by appointing academic Kazuo Ueda as the bank's governor.
Rising prices topped the list of high-priority issues that the Japanese business community wants the next prime minister to address, followed by fiscal reforms. Japan currently carries the industrial world's heaviest debt load, exceeding twice the size of its economy.
The survey, conducted by Nikkei Research on behalf of Reuters, reached out to 506 companies from August 28th to September 6th, with 245 firms responding.