What is the economy like in Japan?

Department store complex in a fashionable shopping district of Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan. The Japanese economy is the fourth-largest in the world, as measured by gross domestic product (GDP). Japan has a market economy that grew extraordinarily quickly for several decades after World War II.

How will Japan's political situation affect the economy?

Japan’s economy is expected to continue expanding led by domestic demand. The political situation will be a potential source of turbulence, having turned suddenly volatile toward the end of 2023 due to the surfacing of a slush fund scandal involving the Liberal Democratic Party.

When did Japan reopen its economy?

Japan reopened its economy to the West after being pressured by the United States twice in 1853 and 1854. Since the mid-19th century, after the Meiji Restoration, the country was opened up to Western commerce and influence and went through a period of economic development that extended through to the First World War.