Overview
- Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi told the Diet the government began reviewing measures last week to curb gasoline and electricity/gas bills and will act without delay, while not planning additional funding beyond passage of the FY2026 budget.
- Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi spoke by phone with Iran’s Mohammad Javad Araghchi to urge swift de‑escalation, condemned attacks threatening Gulf civilians and Hormuz shipping, and demanded the early release of two detained Japanese, receiving assurances on residents’ safety.
- Evacuation efforts continued, with 208 Japanese moved from Doha to Saudi Arabia on charter flights with onward travel to Narita arranged.
- Officials reiterated that the current situation has not been designated an “existential crisis” under security legislation that would allow the exercise of collective self‑defense.
- New York crude briefly topped $110 per barrel for the first time since 2022 on supply fears, framing Tokyo’s price‑relief planning and coinciding with a 1.4% year‑on‑year rise in Japan’s real wages in January driven by higher base pay.