CHRONOLOGY

JULY – AUGUST 2006

JULY

1 The Bank of Japan’s tankan survey of business sentiment for the April– June quarter reveals that the confidence index for large manufacturers has risen one point to 21, while the index for major nonmanufacturing firms has jumped two points to 20.

5 A South Korean oceanographic research vessel enters the exclusive economic zone claimed by Japan in waters surrounding the Takeshima islets (called Dokdo by the Koreans). In response, the Japanese government resolves to conduct a similar survey in the same area in the near future. This past April Tokyo pledged to halt such surveys in exchange for an assurance from Seoul that it would refrain from proposing Korean names for undersea topographical features in the area.

North Korea conducts test-launches of a total of seven ballistic missiles, all of which fall into the Sea of Japan off the coast of Vladivostok, Russia. The Japanese government responds by banning the North Korean ferry Mangyongbong 92 from Japanese ports for six months.

Prime Minister Koizumi Jun’ichirô meets at his official residence with Afghanistan’s President Hamid Karzai. Prime Minister Koizumi pledges that Japan will maintain its assistance to Afghanistan as long as the country continues to work toward its own reconstruction.

6 The Cabinet Office announces an upward revision of its forecasts for real and nominal economic growth in fiscal 2006 by 0.2 percentage point each to 2.1% and 2.2%, respectively.

7 The Bank of Japan’s Policy Board announces new regulations for the central bank’s senior executives, prohibiting them from possessing investments in private funds or stocks of financial institutions and purchasing or selling financial instruments other than deposits or government bonds for individuals. The new policies come after Fukui Toshihiko drew widespread criticism for holding on to an investment he had made in the Murakami fund before becoming governor of the BOJ.

11–15 Prime Minister Koizumi departs for a visit to the Middle East prior to the Group of Eight summit in St. Petersburg, Russia. On July 12 he meets with Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and proposes an initiative called the Corridor for Peace and Prosperity, aimed at promoting stability in the region. On July 13 the prime minister travels to Ramallah, where he holds talks with Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority, before traveling on to Jordan on July 14 to meet with Jordanian Prime Minister Marouf Al Bakhit.

13 A free trade agreement between Japan and Malaysia goes into effect, beginning the gradual elimination of tariffs on a wide variety of products over the next 10 years.

14 The BOJ raises the unsecured overnight call rate to 0.25%, marking the end of its zero-interest-rate policy.

15 The United Nations Security Council unanimously passes a resolution that condemns North Korea’s July 5 missile launches and demands that the nation resume six-party talks. It also imposes sanctions banning countries from engaging in the trade of weapons or nuclear-related materials with North Korea.

15–17 Prime Minister Koizumi attends the G8 summit in St. Petersburg, Russia, where discussions focus on security issues, particularly the Israel-Lebanon conflict. The G8 leaders’ statement condemns North Korea’s ballistic missile test launches and demands that the country unconditionally return to six-party talks concerning its nuclear weapons program.

17 Japan’s 220 remaining Ground Self-Defense Force troops depart Iraq and arrive at Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait, marking the end of the GDSF’s presence in Iraq.

19 A memorandum written by a former Imperial House Agency Grand Steward that was obtained by the Nihon Keizai Shimbun suggests that the late Emperor Shôwa (Hirohito) stopped visiting Yasukuni Shrine due to displeasure over class A war criminals having been enshrined there in 1978.

26 Ministry of Finance trade statistics for January–June 2006 reveal that exports rose 16.1% year on year, but rising oil prices and growing imports from China brought the trade surplus down to ¥3.4 trillion, a 24% decrease compared to the same period last year.

27 The government lifts its ban on American beef imports after agreeing to a set of safety protocols with US officials and inspecting the 35 US meatpacking plants that have been authorized to ship beef to Japan. Previously lifted in December 2005, the ban had been reimposed in January this year after inspectors discovered a shipment containing prohibited spinal column material. The first shipment of US beef arrives at Narita Airport on August 7.

Foreign Minister Asô Tarô meets with his Chinese and South Korean counterparts for talks in Malaysia.

31 An Air Self-Defense Force C130 transport aircraft makes its first flight to Baghdad, carrying multinational forces personnel from Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait.

AUGUST

1 The National Tax Agency announces that assessed land prices as of January 1 had risen nationwide for the first time in 14 years, climbing to an average of ¥114,000 per square meter for an increase of 0.9%, or ¥1,000, from the year before.

3 Foreign Minister Asô makes a sudden trip to Iraq, where he announces that Japan will contribute some ¥3.5 billion in the form of yen loans to assist Iraq’s economic recovery. He also holds talks with Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari and Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.

4 Media reports reveal that Chief Cabinet Secretary Abe Shinzô visited Yasukuni Shrine on April 15. Speaking at a news conference, Abe says that he does not intend to reveal whether he will or will not go there or has or has not already done so.

6 In Nagano Prefecture’s gubernatorial election, former national legislator Murai Jin of the Liberal Democratic Party defeats incumbent governor Tanaka Yasuo, who gained prominence after suspending several dam-building projects in an effort to protect forests and restore the prefecture’s fiscal health.

10 The Bank of Japan reports that the corporate goods price index for July was 101.3, a 3.4% increase from a year before. This marks the twenty-ninth month that the index has shown a year-on-year rise.

The Ministry of Finance releases preliminary figures indicating that the trade surplus for the first half of 2006 fell to ¥4.04 trillion, a year-on-year decrease of 23.3% and its lowest level since 1985. Although exports jumped to a record ¥34.12 trillion, imports climbed to a record ¥30.07 trillion amid rising oil prices and increased oil imports.

10–11 Prime Minister Koizumi visits Mongolia, where he holds talks with the country’s prime minister, Miyeegombyn Enkhbold. The two leaders agree that Japan will assist Mongolia with policy formation to improve the investment environment for the development of its underground resources.

11 The Cabinet Office announces that real gross domestic product in April– June grew 0.2%, or an annualized 0.8%, for the sixth straight quarter of positive growth.

14 A construction crane on a barge strikes a power line at 7:38 am, causing blackouts in much of Tokyo and parts of Chiba and Kanagawa Prefectures that delay hundreds of thousands of commuters. Electrical power is fully restored five hours later.

15 Prime Minister Koizumi visits Yasukuni Shrine to pay respects to the war dead, marking the first time a serving prime minister has gone to the shrine on the anniversary of Japan’s surrender in World War II since Nakasone Yasuhiro in 1985. China and South Korea protest the visit to the shrine, which they associate with Japan’s militaristic past.

16 A shot fired from a Russian border patrol boat kills one of four Japanese fishermen onboard a crabbing ship in the sea near Kaigara Island, one of several islands off Hokkaidô seized by the Soviet Union just after World War II that Japan continues to claim as part of its territory. The Russian government claims the ship was poaching in Russian waters.

21 The Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare reports that 549,255 babies were born in the first six months of 2006, a total of 11,618 more births than the same period last year and the first increase in six years.

24 At a meeting in Kuala Lumpur, economic ministers from the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations and six other countries (Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea) agree to study at the nongovernmental level a Japanese proposal for a regional economic partnership agreement.

25 The Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications reports that the core consumer price index, excluding perishables, rose to 100.1 in July, marking a 0.2% year-on-year increase. The narrow margin of the rise reflects the change of the CPI base year from 2000 to 2005.

Tokyo police arrest the president and four other employees of precision measurement instrument maker Mitutoyo Corp. on suspicion of illegally exporting equipment with nuclear weapons applications.

28–30 Prime Minister Koizumi arrives in Kazakhstan and meets with President Nursultan Nazarbayev. They discuss areas for cooperation in the field of energy resources. The prime minister also holds talks with Uzbekistan’s president, Islam Karimov, in that nation’s capital, Tashkent.

29 Labor statistics for July show the unemployment rate down 0.1 point from June at 4.1% while the ratio of job offers to job seekers improved slightly, edging up 0.01 point to 1.09.

The USS Shiloh, an Aegis-equipped cruiser capable of intercepting short-and medium-range ballistic missiles, arrives at the US Navy base in Yokosuka.

30 The Japanese Olympic Committee selects Tokyo over Fukuoka as its candidate for the 2016 Olympic Summer Games host city.

© 2006 Japan Echo Inc.