1. Kishida’s Approval Rating Stayed Low
According to Yomiuri’s monthly survey, which was conducted from July 19 through July 21, the Kishida Cabinet’s approval rating went up by 2 points to 25%, while its disapproval rating went down by 2 points to 62%.
This is the 9th month in row for the approval ratings to hang low over below 30%.
Although PM Kishida and his team are trying to find a way out, the media is now frequently reporting the signs of the post-Kishida movement.
None of the prospective “Post-Kishida” candidates such as former Secretary General of the party Shigeru Ishiba, the present Secretary General Toshimitsu Motegi, Economic Security Minister Sanae Takaichi, Digital Minister Taro Kono and former Economic Security Minister Takayuki Kobayashi has announced yet to run for the LDP’s presidential election in this fall, some of them began to organize private study groups to discuss about campaign strategies.
The same Yomiuri’s survey revealed that 25% of the respondents chose Shigeru Ishiba as the next leader, followed by Shinjiro Koizumi (15%), Taro Kono (8%), and Sanae Takaichi (6%).
2 Japan’s Population Continues To Decline
Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications announced on July 24 that the number of Japanese people living in Japan as of January 1st of this year was 121,561,801, which is a 861,237 (0.7%) decrease from the previous year.
It is the 15th decrease in row since 2009 when the population reached its peak.
The number of newly born babies was 729,367, which was the smallest ever, while the number of death was 1,579,727, which renewed the highest number.
Only Tokyo recognized an increase of its population, while all the other 46 prefectures found their individual populations declining.
The number of foreign nationals living in Japan was 3,323,374, which is an increase of 329,535 from 2023.
The combined population of Japan was 124,885,175, which is still a decrease of 531,702 from the last year.
3. Japan-China Diplomatic Exchanges Being Revitalized
On May 29, the Chinese Communist Party’s diplomatic section leader Liu Jianchao visited Japan and met with LDP’s Secretary General Toshimitsu Motegi and former Secretary General Toshihiro Nikai.
It was a sign for China to revamp the stagnant relationship with Japan as the result of China’s embargo of Japanese seafoods due to Japan’s release of the treated water from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, Chinese Government’s arrests of Japanese nationals doing business in China and the Senkaku Archipelagos issue.
This month, the ruling Liberal Democratic Party sent three separate delegations to China, followed by a bipartisan mission led by Banri Kaieda, Vice Chairman of the House of Representatives.
The Japan-China bilateral diplomatic relationship had been led by former Secretary General of LDP Toshihiro Nikai and the Chinese Communist Party President Xi Jinping’s repeated exchanges.
Nikai, however, is now 85 years old and the party seems to be attempting to build new diplomatic channels with China.
4. METI Released A Guidebook About The Use Of Generative AI
The METI edited guidebook introduces nine actual business cases that METI solely judges “properly” use generative AI.
It seems METI would like to encourage industries to positively use generative AI for productivity, efficiency and creativity gains, yet to alert that there are risks of using it such as infringement of intellectual properties and disinformation, etc.
Following are four cases out of the nine introduced:
Morikatron (Game creation company) Stories and characters of games are generated by AI.
DLE (Entertainment contents provider) Voice, tone and style of its original anime characters can by reproduced by AI for users.
Dainihon Jochugiku (KINCHO pesticide manufacturer) AI generates CMs.
Itoen (green tea supplier) Its CMs show an AI talent. Product’s packages are designed by AI.
There are individual concrete countermeasures introduced in the guidebook as well to avoid the infringement of intellectual properties, disinformation or wrong use by human involvements.