All Abe's men: Japan's economy ministry sidelined under Suga

Policymaking dynamics shift as new prime minister pushes reform agenda

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Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga is removing officials that gave the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry outsize influence in his predecessor's administration.

KOSUKE TAKEUCHI, Nikkei staff writer

TOKYO -- Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, a dominant force in policymaking under Shinzo Abe, is set to see its influence diminished under new Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.

Suga's appointments on Wednesday to top posts in the prime minister's office included the replacement of Takaya Imai, a former economy ministry bureaucrat, with an official hailing from outside Japan's political nerve center. Meanwhile, Hiroto Izumi, who has supported Suga for many years, was reappointed as a special adviser to the prime minister and will be entrusted with general policy coordination.

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