'Third Highest Approval Rating Ever' Suga Cabinet... '50% Reconsideration of Abenomics Succession' (Summary)

Asahi Poll... 'Abe Economic Policy Should Continue' Response Higher Than 37%
Nihon Keizai Survey Ranks Economic Recovery as Top Priority, 'Fiscal Reconstruction' Third
All Key Economic Ministers Including Finance Minister Aso Taro Retained

[Image source=AP Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] The cabinet of Yoshihide Suga in Japan recorded the third-highest approval rating in history immediately after its launch. However, regarding economic policy, many respondents said that the policies of the former Abe Shinzo cabinet should be "reconsidered," which is expected to be a burden for the Suga cabinet that intends to inherit Abenomics.

Japanese media such as Asahi Shimbun and Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported on the 18th that the cabinet's initial approval rating was remarkably high, exceeding 60%. Nihon Keizai reported that a public opinion poll conducted from the 16th to 17th, right after the launch of the Suga cabinet, surveyed 1,007 Japanese voters and recorded an approval rating of 74%. This ranks third in history since Nihon Keizai's polling records began in 1987, following Junichiro Koizumi's cabinet in 2001 (80%) and Yukio Hatoyama's cabinet in 2009 (75.0%). Asahi Shimbun reported that 65% of the total 1,266 respondents expressed support.

The most common reason for supporting the Suga cabinet was "character," cited by 46%, followed by "stability" at 39%, according to Nihon Keizai. In a Mainichi survey, the most frequent response was "policies seem promising" at 35%, and 30% said it was because "it seems the Abe administration's line will be continued."

The top priority policy tasks that Prime Minister Suga should address were mostly related to COVID-19 response and economic recovery. Nihon Keizai reported that in a survey asking "What policy tasks should Prime Minister Suga prioritize?" 58% of respondents chose COVID-19 response, and 42% selected economic recovery. In a survey conducted by Kyodo News, 35.2% mentioned economic recovery as a task the new cabinet should solve, ranking second after COVID-19 response (64.1%).

However, voters showed the view that the Suga cabinet's economic policies need adjustment. Prime Minister Suga has expressed his intention to inherit former Prime Minister Abe's policies, but at least regarding economic policy, there was a negative reaction. In the Asahi poll, 50% responded that Abe's economic policies should be "reconsidered," which was more than the 37% who said it was better to "continue" them.

This is interpreted as a call to shift away from Abenomics, which stimulates the economy by injecting money. Introduced with the launch of Abe's second cabinet in 2012, Abenomics initially showed visible effects through fiscal easing, but failed to sustain results due to consumption tax hikes and sluggish structural reforms. The debt-to-GDP ratio also rose to the high 200% range. Consequently, there has been criticism that the large-scale monetary easing measures ultimately did not significantly help the middle class or small and medium-sized enterprises. It is also notable that "rebuilding finances" ranked third (25%) among priority policy tasks in the Nihon Keizai survey.

However, given the nature of the Suga cabinet, it is expected to be difficult to reflect the public opinion poll results. Key ministers of Abe's cabinet in economic departments, such as Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Taro Aso, Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Hiroshi Kajiyama, and Minister for Economic Revitalization Yasutoshi Nishimura, all retained their posts. This reflects the intention to continue the existing policy stance.

Meanwhile, in this public opinion poll, the majority of responses were negative regarding the hot topic in Japanese politics of early dissolution of the House of Representatives and general elections.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.