"The question is whether Abe's nominees can win opposition support"
- Tomoaki Iwai, a political science professor at Nihon University
Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is trying to avoid the same situation, which happened in 2008, when the seat for the Bank of Japan governor was left open for weeks, so Abe is trying to find a candidate who will win vital opposition support. A leading candidate Toshiro Muto, who is a former top finance ministry official, was already rejected for this position five years ago when the opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) nixed his appointment. Liberal Democratic Party led by Shinzo Abe and their candidate lack a majority in the parliament's upper house, which must approve of the government's nominee. Earlier this month Masaaki Shirakawa, current BoJ governor, said he will step down on March 19, almost three weeks before his term is due.
"The over-riding point is that the nomination goes smoothly with as little controversy as possible in parliament," said Jesper Koll, director of equity research at JP Morgan in Tokyo.
"The question is whether Abe's nominees can win opposition support. If the Democrats agree, it is simple. If not, Your Party will hold the key," said Tomoaki Iwai, a political science professor at Nihon University.
© Dukascopy Bank SA