The Bank of Japan on July 11 upgraded its assessment of the Japanese economy for the seventh straight month and said that it is "starting to recover moderately" on the strength of various economic indexes turning upward, including improving business sentiment and steady consumer spending.
Certainly the economy and the effect of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's economic policy will be important points voters will consider in casting their ballots in Sunday's Upper House election. For the first time since January 2011, the BOJ used the word "recovery" in its economic assessment. The problem, however, is that the average citizen has yet to benefit from this "upturn."
In his campaign, Mr. Abe appears confident because the BOJ has provided an optimistic economic assessment and the opposition forces are divided. On the day the BOJ announced the moderate economic recovery, the prime minister, campaigning in Miyazaki, said: "The real economy is improving without fail. Our economic policy is not amiss."