European Breakfast with Motoshige Itoh, Professor at the University of Tokyo and Adviser to the Government of Shinzo Abe: “On the Present State of the Japanese Economy: A Message to European Economy”

Four years after the drastic economic measures implemented by the government of Shinzo Abe -strong monetary expansion, tax increases and depreciation of the yen- can we talk about the success of Abenomics? What has the Japanese economy accomplished during this period? And what has been its impact -positive or negative- on the European economy? What are the prospects for the conclusion of the controversial Free Trade Agreement between Japan and the EU? What can we expect from an agreement with the potential to nearly double the positive effects of the contentious TTIP on European GDP growth?  

In the coming years, the Japanese government will face major challenges that include a rapidly expanding aging population, energy reform, implementation of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) and the development of a migration policy. These elements have the potential to contribute to the expected revitalization of the Japanese economy but, similar to Europe, face some of the challenges that globalization reserves for mature economies.  

Motoshige Itoh is Professor Emeritus of International Economics at the University of Tokyo, Professor of International Social Science at Gakushuin University and intellectual father of Abenomics. Previously, he served as the Dean of the Graduate School of Economics of the University of Tokyo. He holds a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Rochester and is a member of the Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy of Japan.

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