TOKYO (WS News) – Japanese stocks and the yen are expected to fall while longer-dated domestic government bond yields are seen rising as exit polls suggest Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s coalition is set to lose its parliamentary majority in Sunday’s election.
The long-ruling LDP and its junior coalition partner Komeito – or potentially even another grouping – could be forced into power-sharing agreements with other parties to form a government, the polls suggested.
The prospect of the scandal-plagued LDP losing its standalone majority put Japan’s financial markets on edge leading up to the election. Fears heightened as opinion surveys in the run-up to the vote indicated the coalition itself might lose its majority.
“The political uncertainty from the election outcome may negatively affect investors’ sentiment, putting pressure on the markets in the near term,” said Samuel Hoang, a portfolio manager for Japan funds at Eastspring Investments in Singapore.
A minority coalition in particular would draw market attention to the policy stance of opposition parties that could become potential partners, many of which favour low interest rates. Markets could also price in more aggressive government spending.
“If they want to show good teamwork, they need to spend more,” said Shoki Omori, chief Japan desk strategist at Mizuho Securities. “Fiscal policy is going to come first – that’s where the focus is going to be, and I think it’s going to need to be a big one.”
