CHRONOLOGY

NOVEMBER — DECEMBER 2007

NOVEMBER

1 The Antiterrorism Special Measures Law expires, and the supply ship Tokiwa and destroyer Kirisame, which had been on a mission to supply fuel for other countries’ naval vessels in the Indian Ocean under this law, head back to Japan.

Two of the five textbook publishers instructed by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology to remove references to the Japanese army’s role in forcing civilians to commit mass suicide in the Battle of Okinawa in 1945 petition the ministry to reinclude them, shortly after which the remaining three publishers also file petitions. On December 26, the ministry agrees to the reinsertion of toned-down references to the army’s involvement.

2 Prime Minister Fukuda Yasuo meets with Democratic Party of Japan leader Ozawa Ichirô to discuss the formation of a grand coalition. The two reach a tentative agreement, but it is rejected by other DPJ executives. Ozawa tenders his resignation from the DPJ presidency on November 4, but he is subsequently persuaded to stay on.

6 A preliminary report from the Cabinet Office indicates the economy is expanding, with the September diffusion index of coincident indicators at 66.7%, marking the sixth consecutive month above 50%. Leading indicators feel the effects of the continuing US subprime mortgage crisis and fall all the way to 0%, a rate not seen in a preliminary report since October 1991.

12 The Ministry of Finance reports that the current account surplus reached ¥12.42 trillion over the six-month period beginning in April, a 34.1% increase from a year before and the highest amount since 1985. The trade surplus climbed to ¥6.32 trillion, a year-on-year increase of 40.9%. Exports and imports also reached record highs of ¥39.68 trillion (up 11.5%) and ¥33.36 trillion (up 7.2%), the latter due to high oil prices.

13 Reports show the 2007 third-quarter gross domestic product grew 0.6% from the previous quarter, equivalent to an annualized growth rate of 2.6%.

A bill to renew the Antiterrorism Special Measures Law and resume refueling activities in the Indian Ocean is approved by the House of Representatives and sent to the opposition-controlled House of Councillors, where the DPJ says it will block passage.

15–17 Prime Minister Fukuda visits the United States and meets with President George W. Bush for the first time since taking office in September. Fukuda expresses his determination to restart Japan’s antiterrorism-related refueling activities in the Indian Ocean. Bush reaffirms his sympathy for the Japanese abducted by North Korea and his intention to continue working with Japan to denuclearize that country through the six-party talks.

16 In the latest of a series of scandals involving the food industry, the Osaka Prefectural Police Department searches 12 locations with ties to restaurant operator Senba Kitchô, including its head office, on suspicion of mislabeling meat products and selling expired dessert items.

20 The new screening process of fingerprinting and photographing foreign nationals entering Japan begins across the country.

20-21 Prime Minister Fukuda attends a round of meetings with other Asian leaders in Singapore, including a three-way summit with Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun and the 16-nation East Asia Summit, where the participants sign the Singapore Declaration on Climate Change, Energy and the Environment, agreeing to tackle global warming as a common issue.

21 According to a preliminary report from the Ministry of Finance, the October trade surplus was up by 66.1% over the previous year, reaching ¥1.0 trillion, despite a year-on-year 1.5% decrease to ¥1.5 trillion in exports to the United States. The surplus was swelled by exports of automobiles to the Middle East and Russia and of mobile phone parts to China.

Reeling from the yen’s rise to its highest level of the year against the US dollar, the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Nikkei average closes below 15,000 for the first time since July 2006.

Kyoto University Professor Yamanaka Shin’ya announces that he and a team of colleagues have successfully used human skin cells to make embryonic stem cell–like cells without using human embryos. Researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison announce a similar success.

27 Prime Minister Fukuda and Vietnamese President Nguyen Minh Triet meet in Tokyo and sign a 44-point joint statement on economic and environmental issues.

28 Former Vice-Minister of Defense Moriya Takemasa and his wife are arrested for allegedly accepting bribes, including golf trips and cash, from an executive of Yamada Corp., supplier of goods to the Self-Defense Forces.

30 The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications reports that the October consumer price index, excluding fresh food, increased by 0.1% from the previous year, the first such rise in 10 months. The high price of crude oil led to an increase in gasoline and electricity costs, but calculations that exclude energy and food show a 0.3% drop.

DECEMBER

1 Minister for Foreign Affairs Koumura Masahiko and five other cabinet ministers take part in the First Japan-China High-Level Economic Dialogue in Beijing. The Chinese side is chaired by Vice-Premier Zeng Peiyan. Topics addressed include cooperation in the areas of climate change, environmental protection, and energy.

3 A panel on reform of the scandal-rocked Ministry of Defense holds its first meeting. The panel is headed by Minami Nobuya, former president of Tokyo Electric Power Co., and includes the chief cabinet secretary and the minister of defense, along with academics and others.

7 The Cabinet Office announces that real GDP for the July–September quarter was up 0.4%, or an annualized 1.5%, down 0.2 points, or an annualized 1.1 points, from earlier estimates due to sluggish capital investment and slower inventory growth.

11 Speaking to the press, Minister of Health, Labor, and Welfare Masuzoe Yôichi admits that it will be extremely difficult to fulfill the government’s pledge to identify the beneficiaries of 19.75 million payments into the public pension system, some 38.8% of the roughly 50 million payments whose ownership is unclear.

12 The Finance Ministry announces preliminary figures showing that the nation’s current account surplus for October was up 45.7% from a year ago to ¥2.23 trillion, the tenth consecutive month of year-on-year increases.

The Bank of Japan announces that the corporate goods price index for November was 105.0, up 0.2% from the previous month and 2.3% year on year.

The United States and Japan conclude negotiations on a special measures agreement concerning a portion of the "sympathy budget" under which Japan bears some of the costs for US forces in Japan. The new agreement on host-nation support covers a period of three years starting 2008. While the amount of support under the agreement will remain unchanged at about ¥140 billion in the first year, payments for utilities are to be reduced by ¥400 million in the following two years. The Japanese side had sought more substantial cuts.

14 The BOJ releases its latest tankan survey of business sentiment, showing the diffusion index for major manufacturers at an anemic 19, down 4 points from the previous survey in September due to concerns about high oil prices and the US subprime loan mess.

16 A Kyôdô News Service poll finds support for the Fukuda cabinet at 35.3%, down 11.7 points from November. Nonsupport is 47.6%, up 11.0 points. Some 57.6% of respondents say that the government’s admission that it will be difficult to identify all beneficiaries of unidentified payments into the public pension system is a "violation of a public pledge."

17 The government releases figures showing that the diffusion index of coincident economic indicators for October was 70%, the seventh consecutive month for this key gauge to remain over the 50% mark. The index of leading economic indicators, by contrast, stood at 18.2%, the third month in a row it has been below 50%, indicating that while the economy is robust at present, concerns remain, particularly about prospects for the US economy.

19 The cabinet approves the official economic outlook for fiscal 2008 (April 2008 to March 2009), predicting 2.0% real growth in GDP.

20 The government decides on a supplemental budget for fiscal 2007. Roughly ¥1.78 trillion is appropriated for such pressing needs as disaster relief and social security.

21 The government announces that plans to catch humpback whales in the Antarctic Ocean will be postponed for a year or two. The postponement had been requested by the United States, which currently chairs the International Whaling Commission.

The House of Councillors passes a bill requiring lawmakers to report all spending items over ¥10,000 by their political funds organizations with the exception of salaries, and to attach receipts. The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications will establish a third-party committee to audit reports.

24 The cabinet approves an ¥83.06 trillion draft budget for fiscal 2008, an increase of 0.2% over the fiscal 2007 budget. While cuts are made in some areas, spending on social security rises.

The government scraps plans to establish a Japanese version of the US National Security Council, as had been advocated by former Prime Minister Abe Shinzô. Prime Minister Fukuda judges that the functions of the envisioned body can be carried out through close coordination among existing government organs.

27–30 Prime Minister Fukuda visits China for the first time since taking office. In Beijing he meets with President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao and delivers an address at Peking University. The prime minister also visits the cities of Tianjin, Jinan, and Qufu.

© 2008 Japan Echo Inc.