Bank of Japan Governor Toshihiko Fukui faced a barrage of criticism yesterday as he acknowledged he profited from an investment fund whose high-profile founder has been arrested for alleged insider trading.
The central bank chief's admission rattled already nervous financial markets, contributing to the biggest single-day drop on the Tokyo Stock Exchange since the Sept. 11 attacks on the US.
Confronted with allegations by Japan's opposition, Fukui, who rarely speaks on matters outside monetary policy, launched a surprise defense of Yoshiaki Murakami, a bureaucrat turned corporate trailblazer who was arrested last week.
He said he invested ?10 million (US$87,700) in Murakami's fund in 1999, a year after Fukui quit the central bank in an unrelated scandal, and earned unspecified profits before cancelling the contract several months ago.
"It is true that I provided financial resources to him so as to support his initial lofty vision," Fukui told the financial affairs committee of the upper house.
While officially non-partisan, Fukui was appointed in 2003 by Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's government, which criticized him yesterday but said his job was not on the line.
"People's trust is very important. It is important that he explain himself as the governor of the central bank should assume his responsibilities," said Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe, the government spokesman.
But he added: "We're not thinking of changing the central bank governor."
The opposition Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) was less charitable to Fukui.
"It is a huge problem. We might even say it is a critical problem," DPJ chief Ichiro Ozawa said. "We may take this issue up in parliament. The prime minister also bears a big responsibility."
Fukui's investment and late admission is "not illegal but it raises questions about his moral responsibility," said Toshihiro Ihori, an economics professor at the University of Tokyo.
"From the standpoint of ordinary people's common sense, his conduct seems a bit strange, especially for a person in such an important position," Ihori said.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft