According to comprehensive Japanese media reports, Fumio Kishida, the new president of Japan's Liberal Democratic Party, plans to nominate former Olympic Minister Shunichi Suzuki, 68, for the position of finance minister in the new cabinet. This is the replacement of the Minister of Finance by the Japanese government after 9 years, and the previous Minister of Finance had been served by Taro Aso. It is worth mentioning that Shunichi Suzuki is the younger brother of Aso Taro's wife.
Shunichi Suzuki
Japan's longest-serving finance minister after the war
According to reports, the 81-year-old Taro Aso served as Japan's finance minister for about nine years, making him Japan's longest-serving finance minister after World War II. With Kishida Fumio coming to power and reorganizing the cabinet, Taro Aso will take the opportunity to retire. Some analysts believe that although Aso Taro has played an important role in the international arena, the outstanding financial reconstruction issues during his term of office have not made progress due to the impact of the new crown epidemic and other factors. Therefore, these problems are also left to the successors.
Since December 2012, Taro Aso has held the post of Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister under Shinzo Abe. He is the right and left arm of Shinzo Abe, and actively promotes "Abenomics" with bold financial policies, aggressive fiscal policies, and growth strategies at its core. In September 2020, Aso remained as Finance Minister and Deputy Prime Minister in Yoshihide Suga's cabinet.
In January 2013, Taro Aso and the Bank of Japan issued a joint statement to achieve the 2% price stability target at an early stage. In May 2020, he and Bank of Japan President Higashihiko Kuroda made a joint statement on the response to the coronavirus. During his tenure, Aso Taro raised Japan's consumption tax twice, from 5 percent to 10 percent at the beginning of his presidency. The main purpose is to cover the growing social security spending due to the aging of the birthrate. Nevertheless, after several severe natural disasters and the impact of the new crown epidemic, Japan's debt balance exceeded twice that of GDP, and Japan's finances deteriorated for a time.
Taro Aso has indeed left his footprint in the field of international finance. In February 2009, then-Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso decided to contribute $100 billion to the International Monetary Fund. In addition, as the economy continues to become more digital, in May 2013, Taro Aso proposed to revise the international taxation rules established a century ago. In October of the same year, a meeting of G20 finance ministers and central bank governors was held to reach a final opinion.
Aso has held various positions as Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, and has extensive diplomatic experience and extensive contacts on the international stage. There are concerns in Japan's finance province that if Aso Taro retires, it may affect Japan's presence on the international stage, and Japan has lost an important leader.
He was succeeded by the younger brother of Aso's wife
According to Japanese media reports, Kishida Fumio appointed Taro Aso as vice president of the Liberal Democratic Party, and the successor of the finance minister is former Olympic Minister Shunichi Suzuki. The two major challenges facing Shunichi Suzuki are to revive Japan's economy, which has been hit by the coronavirus pandemic, and to fully improve Japan's deteriorating finances.
It is understood that Shunichi Suzuki is the representative of Kishida Fumio's recommendation in this LDP presidential election. In addition to his previous position as Japan's Olympic Minister, he has also served as Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of the Environment, and Chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party's General Affairs Committee. Shunichi Suzuki's father was former Japanese Prime Minister Yoshiyuki Suzuki, and Suzuki Yoshiyukimoto was also the founder of the "Koikekai" led by Kishida Fumio. At the same time, Shunichi Suzuki was also the younger brother-in-law of Taro Aso. He has been elected to the Diet of Japan nine times.
In the House election, Shunichi Suzuki was negative of the opposition's proposal to reduce the consumption tax. In March 2020, Shunichi Suzuki, then chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party's General Affairs Committee, said: "Lowering the consumption tax will lead to less investment in supporting local development. It will have a huge impact on local innovation. Consumption tax is also a source of funds for the gratuitous implementation of early childhood education, and if the consumption tax is reduced, it may have a huge impact on early childhood education. So, I'm cautious. ”
According to Japanese media reports, Kishida Fumio will promote tens of trillions of economic countermeasures within the year after coming to power, and once passed, it will make Suzuki Shunichi face greater financial difficulties. Affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Japanese government is significantly cutting spending. The Japanese government aims to turn basic fiscal revenues in black by 2025.
Ashikaga Masamichi, an analyst at UBS Securities, said that Shunichi Suzuki may take the same position as Aso Taro, and it is estimated that he will respect the opinions of the Ministry of Finance officials and continue to support fiscal soundness, but it is also possible that "political pressure will not be able to fully implement it." In addition, Miwazo, chief economist of Nomura Securities, said: "Because of the impact of the new crown epidemic, it is unlikely that the fiscal tightening will be tightened immediately." He shouldn't make a lot of changes to the route when he comes to power. ”
Red Star News reporter Luo Tian
Edited by Pan Li
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