Surprise new Japan PM rattles markets

Surprise new Japan PM rattles markets

67 year-old Shigeru Ishiba has been elected as the new Prime Minister of Japan, at the fifth time of asking. The news came as a surprise to Japanese stock markets which, in the week prior, had risen almost 5 per cent on the suggestion that Sanae Takaichi was favourite. Takaichi would have likely advocated to maintain very low interest rates and follow the market friendly economics which has defined Japan for many years, coined ‘Abenomics'. Instead the Nikkei 225 index dropped 4.8% on Monday as the market weighed up Ishiba's pro rate rise rhetoric, leading to a stronger domestic currency, as well as potentially introducing higher taxes to businesses and investment income. The market has since settled and made steady gains as Ishiba looks to form a cabinet and begin his tenure.