Japanese concerned over the economy

PM to unveil new phase in economic recovery, amid concerns initial success will be hard to maintain.

The stock market in Japan has rocketed by more than a third this year; prices are rising too; but wages have been static.

The impact on the economy as a whole is certainly being felt. In the first quarter of this year, it grew at 3.5 percent, fuelled not just by a weakening yen, but also by an increase in domestic consumer demand.

But the longer-term success of Shinzo Abe’s gamble rests on a number of things: on consumer spending spreading beyond the wealthy to the rest of Japan; on business starting to invest in increased capacity again; and on his ability to push through structural reforms of how Japan’s economy works.

Al Jazeera’s Harry Fawcett reports from Tokyo.

Source: Al Jazeera