One year of Abenomics – what has changed?

A year after the election that returned Mr Abe as prime minister, the interim verdict on his attempts to revitalise the economy must be that much more still needs to be done. The most radical policy change has been the adoption of a more aggressive easing stance by the BoJ. Fiscal policy, in contrast, has followed familiar patterns, with the commitment to fiscal consolidation mostly just lip service so far. With some notable exceptions, structural reforms have largely disappointed, too. Hopefully, 2014 will see more progress on this front.