Japan's inflation expectations as a measure of the success of Abenomics

Japan's policy of actively stimulating the economy has been dubbed Abenomics, after Shinzo Abe, who was elected as prime minister a little over a year ago. The main objective of Abenomics is to bring Japan on to a permanent growth trajectory and leave behind the prolonged deflationary spiral. The Bank of Japan has set a 2% inflation target, which it supports with a monetary policy of zero interest rates and quantitative easing. Both recorded inflation and consumers' and market inflation expectations have firmed up in recent months. It is, however, unclear to what extent the current performance of the Japanese economy is a consequence of the policies pursued and whether the changes will be permanent.