Ishiba announces bid to succeed Kishida as Japan's leader

TOKYO - Shigeru Ishiba, a former defence minister, said on Saturday (Aug 24) he would run in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party leadership election on Sept 27 that will pick a successor to Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

Kishida will step down in September, ending a three-year term as leader of the world's fourth-largest economy.

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In a recent interview with Reuters, Ishiba endorsed the Bank of Japan's policy of gradually raising interest rates, saying the normalisation of ultra-loose monetary policy could push down prices and boost industrial competitiveness.