Takaichi wants to make Japan Inc. great again

In a memorable quip during her campaign for election earlier this year, Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi promised that she would smash the button marked “growth.” Her strategy now pits that instinct against those who fear the country’s finances may be what gets smashed instead. In a land where leaders tend to last an average of about two years, yet another growth plan can elicit yawns. But the blueprint Takaichi revealed in June, now set to be advanced later this month, is something different: It’s the inaugural post-deflation outline for expansion and the first comprehensive industrial policy in decades. Together with the private sector, the document calls for ¥370 trillion ($2.3 trillion) of domestic investment through 2040 in an attempt to fortify Japan both economically and geopolitically against China. It’s nothing less than a call to build an industrial state after decades of relying on monetary policy and the market. But the biggest challenge to making Japan Inc. great again is likely to come not from Beijing, but from Tokyo’s own anxiety over spending. With your current subscription plan you can comment on stories. However, before writing your first comment, please create a display name in the Profile section of your subscriber account page.