New Keidanren Chief Vows to Be Straightforward with Japan Govt

June 1, 2018

Tokyo- Hiroaki Nakanishi, new chairman of the Japan Business Federation, or Keidanren, said Thursday he plans to express his opinions candidly to the Japanese government and ruling bloc.

"I won't hesitate to speak straightforwardly to the government and ruling camp," Nakanishi said in his inaugural speech at a meeting of the nation's largest business lobby.

The comments by Nakanishi, chairman of Hitachi Ltd. <6501>, came as his predecessor at Keidanren, Sadayuki Sakakibara, was criticized over his close relationship with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's administration.

In a speech at the meeting, Abe asked Keidanren anew for cooperation to pull Japan out of deflation. "Now is the crucial time to overcome deflation," he said.

At a press conference after the meeting, Nakanishi said he will strongly push for economic growth, structural reform and popular diplomacy.

Constitutional amendments "should be considered flexibly in line with the times," he said, referring to Abe's key policy agenda item.

Keidanren appointed four new vice chairmen, including Shuzo Sumi, chairman of Tokio Marine Holdings Inc. <8766>, and Tetsuro Tomita, chairman of East Japan Railway Co., or JR East.

The other two are Shinya Katanozaka, president and chief executive officer of ANA Holdings Inc., and Tsutomu Sugimori, president of JXTG Nippon Oil & Energy Corp., a unit of JXTG Holdings Inc.. Jiji Press