Japan PM pledges to relax border controls by June

Bloomberg

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said he would bring Japan’s virus-related border controls in line with other wealthy democracies next month, as he sought to boost consumer spending to fight an economic slowdown.
Kishida credited the border controls with helping the country weather the pandemic relatively well, even as he announced their relaxation in a speech in the City of London. The premier told an audience at Guildhall that Japan would be as accessible as other Group of Seven countries by next month, when leaders of the bloc are due to meet in Germany.
“We will further relax controls, so that in June it will be possible to enter the country as smoothly as other G-7 nations,” said Kishida, who was on the last leg of a tour that also took him to Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam and Italy.
More broadly, Kishida pledged to pursue policies that fuel strong economic growth, in remarks that appeared aimed at easing investor concern about his “New Capitalism” plans. He said he would encourage citizens to switch to investment from savings. “I will continue to listen carefully to the markets, to those on the ground, and press ahead with policies,” he said.
Border easing would be welcomed by Japan’s tourism industry, which has been urging the government to allow in more overseas visitors to take advantage of the weakening yen.