Why did Yoshihide Suga resign as PM, who will replace him and what are the implications of each for the market?
In short:
- Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga to resign after a steady decline in approval ratings and the subsequent loss of backing from leaders in his party.
- Suga’s departure reduces the chance of an unfavourable outcome in the lower house election for the ruling party – there were concerns within the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) this could occur without a change in Prime Minister.
- Key contenders for his successor include: the increasingly popular vaccine minister Taro Kono; former minister of foreign affairs Fumio Kishida; former internal affairs and communications minister Sanae Takaichi; and former defence minister Shigeru Ishiba.
Given the weakened opposition, we still expect the LDP to retain power after the general election.
