Bank of Japan Gov. Toshihiko Fukui has entered his second year at the helm of the central bank, and in an economic climate radically different from the time when he first took up the job.
How has he handled the job over the past year?
On April 28, 2003, the benchmark Nikkei average on the Tokyo Stock Exchange hit a post-bubble low of 7,607.88. Confronted with the dire condition of Japan's economy, symbolized by its sluggish share prices, Fukui apparently had no choice but to continue with the ultra-easy monetary policies of his predecessor, Masaru Hayami, and had little room to introduce new ideas and new policies. At the same time, Fukui apparently won some support both at home and abroad for the soft-spoken manner he used to explain the positions of the central bank.