Abstract

In this talk, Professor Watanabe will examine the causes of Japan's economic stagnation since the collapse of the bubble economy in the early 1990s. He will investigate the characteristics of monetary policy - especially that of Abenomics, fiscal policy, and structural reform aimed at enhancing economic efficiency, including digitalization, as well as the role of labor unions in wage determination. This talk will clarify how Abenomics' monetary policy and the interest group politics of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) contributed to the weakening of the Japanese economy and how the LDP's structural reforms have been inadequate in some areas and insufficient in others. Professor Watanabe will also examine how Japanese labor unions have contributed to wage stagnation in the last three decades, compared to the unions in other countries.