'Abenomics' has become a word firmly established in the everyday Japanese vocabulary, even though it is only a year since Shinzo Abe's return for a second term as prime minister of the world's number three economy. The term has quickly come to stand for the positive effects of so-called quantitative easing, and attempts to kick-start a healthy level of inflation and economic growth to reverse the stagnation and deflation of the past two decades. Despite evidence that positive business sentiment and consumer spending are on the rise, many fear that this may simply be an illusory upturn, especially as the government has confirmed that from April 2014 consumption tax is to rise from 5% to 8%.
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