This month it becomes official. When the Japanese cabinet next releases its regular economic report, the current period of economic expansion is to be declared Japan's longest postwar recovery. At 58 months, it will eclipse even the Izanagi boom of 1965-1970, a growth surge so powerful it was honoured with the name of a Shinto god.
The recovery that took root shortly after Junichiro Koizumi came to office as prime minister in late 2001 has undoubtedly been a tonic for Japan's sickly economy. After years of sluggish growth punctuated by sharp recessions, Japan finally appears to have shaken off many of the problems resulting from a dramatic collapse of asset prices in 1990.
