Business Insider (February 16)
“The US economy managed to shake off Wall Street’s gloomy forecasts and dodge a long-predicted slump last year — but the same can’t be said for two other members of the G7.” Both the UK and Japan entered technical recessions based on data released Thursday showing each nation’s GDP fell during both of the two last quarters in 2023.
Tags: 2023, Economy, Fell, Forecasts, G7, GDP, Japan, Predicted, Slump, Technical recessions, U.S., UK, Wall Street
Time (June 26)
In order to discuss “gender equality and women’s empowerment,” G7 representatives gathered in Nikko, making for “an awkward photo-op, highlighting Japan’s ongoing struggles with gender.” The only male was its chair “Japan’s representative to the gender equality meeting, Masanobu Ogura…. The optics are not likely to help Japan ward off mounting criticism of its deficiencies in gender and LGBT rights from its peers in the informal economic bloc of advanced democracies.”
Tags: Advanced democracies, Awkward, Criticism, Deficiencies, G7, Gender equality, Japan, LGBT rights, Nikko, Ogura, Optics, Photo-op, Struggles, Women’s empowerment
Financial Times (May 22)
“China ordered a swath of its infrastructure companies to stop buying from US chipmaker Micron” hours after the G7 ended and President Biden spoke of a thaw in relations. China also summoned Japan’s ambassador to protest related issues. This “underscored the big challenges to stabilising US-China relations at the end of a summit in Hiroshima where Biden and other leaders of the advanced economies issued their harshest criticism of Beijing — while also acknowledging the need to co-operate with China.”
Tags: Ambassador, Biden, Challenges, China, Chipmaker, G7, Hiroshima, Japan, Micron, Protest, Relations, Summit, Thaw, U.S.
Time (May 22)
“Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky was the undisputed star of the G7. But Summit’s focus remained firmly on China…. The bulk of business in Hiroshima was not focused on Vladimir Putin’s war of choice, but some 3,600 miles east of Moscow: Beijing’s growing assertiveness.”
Tags: Beijing, China, G7, Growing assertiveness, Hiroshima, Putin, Star, Summit, Ukraine, Undisputed, War of choice, Zelensky
Financial Times (July 2)
“The readings on the Tankan, widely regarded as Japan’s most reliable economic data series, suggest Asia’s only G7 economy is well-positioned for growth in the second half of the year.”
Tags: Asia, Economic data, Economy, G7, Growth, Japan, Reliable, Series, Tankan, Well-positioned
The Economist (November 17)
“More than half of Japanese babies can expect to live to 100.” This blessing presents Japan with a tremendous challenge “to stay solvent as it turns silver.” Among the G7, Japan now has the highest “share of over-65s in work,” but this not enough. “If Japanese people are going to live to 100 they will have to retire much later than 70.”
New York Times (June 10)
“There has never been a disaster like the G7 meeting that just took place. It could herald the beginning of a trade war, maybe even the collapse of the Western alliance. At the very least it will damage America’s reputation as a reliable ally for decades to come; even if Trump eventually departs the scene in disgrace, the fact that someone like him could come to power in the first place will always be in the back of everyone’s mind.”
Tags: Ally Disgrace, Collapse, Damage, Disaster, G7, Power, Reliable, Reputation, Trade war, U.S., Western alliance
Wall Street Journal (June 4)
Despite the “unanimous concern and disappointment” expressed in a statement by G7 members Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the UK, ”the Trump administration showed no sign of backing down from restrictive tariffs” or provided any indication “that the administration was wary of inching closer to a trade war.”
Tags: Canada, Concern, Disappointment, France, G7, Germany, Italy, Japan, Tariffs, Trade war, Trump, UK, Unanimous
New York Times (April 13)
“Now that Mr. Kerry has paved the way, there should be nothing keeping President Obama from becoming the first American president to stop at Hiroshima when he travels to Japan next month for a meeting of the Group of 7 leaders. But he should be prepared to offer some tangible new initiative to keep alive his flagging vision of a nuclear-free world.”
