Key Takeaways
- Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has outlined an ambitious agenda for Japan, focusing on economic revitalization through fiscal policy overhauls, increased R&D and CAPEX, and a proposed food sales tax suspension to be funded without new debt.
- The European Commission has charged Meta Platforms (META) with breaching antitrust rules by allegedly blocking AI rivals from its WhatsApp Business API, with regulators intending to impose interim measures to prevent serious harm.
- Takaichi, whose coalition secured an overwhelming majority in a recent lower-house vote, also plans to make arrangements for amending Japan's constitution, establish a national information bureau, and enhance foreign investment oversight.
- Iran's Supreme Leader advisor, Larijani, is scheduled to visit Oman on Tuesday, following recent nuclear talks with the United States.
Japan's Takaichi Unveils Ambitious Policy Reforms After Landslide Victory
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi has articulated a comprehensive policy agenda aimed at strengthening Japan, following a significant victory for her ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its coalition partner, Ishin, in the recent lower-house election. The coalition secured an overwhelming majority, with the LDP alone reportedly winning around 316 of the 465 seats, surpassing the two-thirds supermajority threshold. Takaichi expressed a "heavy, heavy responsibility" to reinforce the nation after this strong mandate.
In economic policy, Takaichi plans to overhaul how Japan crafts its state budget to provide long-term policy support for promoting corporate research and development (R&D) and capital expenditure (CAPEX). She emphasized the necessity to pull Japan out of "excessively tight fiscal policy" and a "lack of investment." The Prime Minister also announced discussions on a refundable tax credit will commence.
A key proposal from Takaichi is the suspension of the food sales tax at the earliest possible date. Crucially, she stated that this suspension would be funded by securing revenues through non-tax revenues and reviews to subsidies, explicitly ruling out debt issuance to finance the measure. This comes amidst past market concerns regarding her spending plans and their potential impact on bond markets.
Beyond economic measures, Takaichi intends to make arrangements for amending the constitution. Her administration will also submit a bill to establish a National Information Bureau and a Committee on Foreign Investment in the next parliamentary session. On the international front, Takaichi hopes to visit the U.S. and hold talks with US President Trump next month. She also expressed a desire to pursue coalition expansion if the Democratic Party for the People (DPP) is keen.
EU Regulators Charge Meta with Antitrust Breaches over WhatsApp AI Access
The European Commission has formally charged Meta Platforms (META) with breaching antitrust rules by allegedly blocking artificial intelligence (AI) rivals from its WhatsApp Business API. EU regulators stated their intention to impose interim measures against Meta to prevent "serious, irreparable harm to rivals" in the AI chatbot market.
Meta, however, contends that the European Commission's logic is incorrect, arguing that the WhatsApp Business API is not a key distribution channel for chatbots. This development follows a policy change by Meta in October 2025, which, effective January 15, 2026, prohibits general-purpose AI chatbots from using WhatsApp's business API, while Meta's own AI system retains unrestricted access.
Other Global Financial and Geopolitical Updates
In other news, Iran's Larijani, an adviser to Supreme Leader Khamenei, is scheduled to visit Oman on Tuesday. This visit comes days after nuclear talks with the United States.
Meanwhile, Vitol, the world's largest independent oil trader, has reportedly shifted its view on global peak oil demand, now expecting it to be higher and later than previously anticipated. The BoJ Yen-Index was reported at 73.82 on February 9, down from a previous 74.05. On the market, daily gainers included $JOJO with a +116.6% increase, $PIPPIN up +45.8%, and $RNBW rising +35.1%.
Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications.