It is indeed for this reason that we need to reach an early consensus as to the nature of the structural problems in Japan and thus come up with the right prescriptions. Some say that structural problems encompass a variety of issues, not only economic ones but also demographic, educational, and environmental ones.
But, today, I will focus on three economic issues which are interrelated and have a particularly strong impact on Japan’s macroeconomic performance: first, the delay in cleaning up the balance sheet of firms; second, changes in economic growth mechanisms under globalization; and third, the imbalance between savings and investment. IV.