Japan - Political turmoil obscures signs of recovery

The resignation of Prime Minister Fukuda on 1 September after only a year in office attracted little attention outside of Japan. His decision to quit was surprising because not only did he reshuffle his cabinet a month before, but he had also announced a Yen11.7trn ($105bn) economic stimulus package. The stimulus package is designed to kick-start the economy, which contracted in the second quarter, although the measures may not take effect for some time and are far less aggressive than actions in the US and elsewhere. Real GDP declined 2.4% quarter-on-quarter, after strong growth of 3...