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Are you optimistic about Japan's economy this year?

16 Comments
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16 Comments
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It'll probably slip to world's 7th by the end of the year, and the yen will be at least 170/USD. Costs will go up, taxes will go up, pay won't... or at least not to cover the increases by even a fraction. The government will continue to pass record-spending on defense, but tell us to suck it up on high costs and that we'll have to be further taxed to cover it. It will be the year they announce they are planning to raise the retirement age to 70 or 75 in the near future since they don't have the money for pension (they'll say it's to promote working and independence at a later age in life), and we'll see a record amount of brain drain as young people move to Western and other Asian countries due to Japan's economy and future prospects. More and more SE Asian "interns" or people who would have come to Japan to seek a brighter future will be opting to Thailand, South Korea, Vietnam, and India.

-23 ( +17 / -40 )

Every attempt by the government to shore up the Yen has been laughed off by the international markets.

-16 ( +13 / -29 )

Record high corpo's profit, record high tax collection, it's a great economy if you're part of the 1%

9 ( +19 / -10 )

Nah. Japans current PM is somehow even weaker than the previous and so is the BOJ head. Lack of urgency and movement to correct the problem and the now 40 years of wait and see it will get better, continues.

-9 ( +10 / -19 )

With the weak yen, price increase I am worry and pessimistic for 2025.

Also the future president of the US will have a very negative impact.

3 ( +13 / -10 )

lets stay positive minded.

compare to Europe or say AUS or NZ - JPN is doing still great...

2 ( +15 / -13 )

No.

Why? Has anything changed for the positive in the last 3 years?

The Yen just gets weaker and weaker.

The cost of living has just been getting more and more expensive.

and

The "leadership" in the country and the pay remains exactly the same. Pure trash.

-11 ( +7 / -18 )

There isn't one economy in Japan or anywhere else, but several.

The rich will be fine and just go on getting richer whilst they sleep each night.

Ordinary people will feel the pinch even more than last year. The poor will suffer more, whilst inflation and interest rates will nibble away at the middle classes, dragging them further down.

An increasingly tribalised global economy will degrade further towards its eventual tipping point.

5 ( +7 / -2 )

Definitely no and no need to be an expert to see how the economy is going down, weak yen, etc....Japan has 257% of gdp debt, the highest in the world but gvt prefer to waste money in military weapons instead of to make reform of his feudal administration system...

-10 ( +6 / -16 )

What economy?

The Zaibatsu have all outsourced to SE Asian countries long long ago for production,low-cost labour,profit,and less taxes.

-6 ( +4 / -10 )

There is no possible way to be optimistic about Japan's Economy this year.

Just look at the signs. More and more companies are getting bankrupt, the Yen is in a deep dive to 170, possible more; there is ZERO innovation from Japanese companies, zero ideas to take over the world with something good. Meanwhile the Chinese are the main exporters of IT and technology, electric cars, mobile phones, electronics, etc. Japan completely lost the lead in ALL possible domains.

How is the economy going to recover when you are lagging behind everywhere??

-7 ( +4 / -11 )

Just because the yen has weakened does not mean that a recession will occur.

After all, the yen was weak during Japan's period of rapid economic growth.

There is also the issue of corporate internal reserves, but tax cuts are necessary.

What will happen to the Chinese economy?

How much will China Railway's debt increase to?

Not all industries are profitable, and the increasing debt of small and medium-sized enterprises in China is a cause for concern.

2 ( +7 / -5 )

The Wa-army is out in force down-voting any comment that doesn't paint Japan as the land of milk and honey. Many of us enjoy living here but we're not going to pretend everything is hunky-dory, or resort to whataboutism to make us feel better.

-5 ( +1 / -6 )

The real economy, the situations millions of ordinary Japanese people face in their day-to-day lives, will not improve in the near future. However, this is not unique to Japan. People across the developed world are experiencing similar crises. Governments have been irresponsible in their spending, failing to invest in sectors critical to maintaining a prosperous and productive society. Eventually, they will be forced to tax the rich, assuming the wealthy haven't already moved their assets to tax havens like the UAE to protect their fortunes.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

I chose "yes" but I actually think it will be no better & no worse than last year.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Hmmm... after thinking about the huge influx of overseas visitors, with the Osaka Expo on top of that, maybe things will improve on balance for Japan this year, if not for your average punter. It would be good if some of that filters outwards.

4 ( +5 / -1 )

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