Ikeda Hayato

IkedaUPI/Bettmann Archive

Ikeda Hayato,  (born December 3, 1899Hiroshima prefecture, Japan—died August 13, 1965Tokyo), prime minister of Japan from July 1960 until November 1964, who was instrumental in Japan’s phenomenal economic growth in the years after World War II.

Born into a sake brewer’s family, he graduated from Kyōto Imperial University law school in 1925 and began his career in the Ministry of Finance. After rising to the position of vice minister of finance, he won a House of Representatives seat in the January 1949 general election and became minister of finance in the government of Yoshida Shigeru. Eventually he and the future prime minister Satō Eisaku became known as leading exponents of the “Yoshida school” of conservative politics.

Ikeda sought to stabilize an economy wracked by inflation with the strong deflationary policy recommended by Joseph Dodge, a Detroit banker sent by the U.S. government to study the economic difficulties of occupied Japan. Ikeda’s pursuit of “balanced financing” was helped along after 1950 by U.S. military contracts related to the Korean War. Under Prime Minister Yoshida, Ikeda played a leading role in peace treaty negotiations with the United States. In October 1952 he became international trade and industry minister, and for much of the rest of the decade he was either finance or international trade minister, or minister without portfolio. He also served terms as secretary-general of the Liberal Party (subsequently Liberal-Democratic Party) and as chairman of the party’s political affairs research committee.

When Kishi Nobusuke resigned in July 1960, Ikeda became president of the party and began his four years as prime minister. With the stated goal of doubling Japan’s national income in 10 years, Ikeda launched a high-rate economic growth policy based on expanded public-sector spending, reduced taxes, and efforts to keep both inflation and interest rates low. He made determined efforts to break down trade barriers to Japanese goods in foreign markets. Ikeda maintained a lower profile in foreign affairs. While continuing to cultivate close relations with the United States on economic and security matters, he did favour expanding trade ties with the Soviet Union and China. Ikeda resigned in November 1964 because of ill health.