Chair Chatani’s Inaugural Press Conference from Chair Chatani Eiji
May 2025
My name is Eiji Chatani and I have assumed the position of the JFTC Chair.
I strongly feel the weight of responsibility for ensuring appropriate operation of competition policy. I look forward to working together productively.
First of all, I would like to talk about my thoughts on my duties.
Japan is facing big challenges such as overall population decline and an aging population amid the rapidly changing socioeconomic environment surrounding us, including the progress of digitalization. The current state of Japan’s economy stands at the crossroads of whether or not it can break free from its long history of a cost-cutting economy and shift to a “growth-oriented economy driven by wage increases and investment,” rather than falling back into deflation. Moreover, achieving sustained wage growth requires urgent efforts to enhance corporate productivity and increase added value, which are urgent challenges we face.
Under such circumstances, it is important to ensure consumers’ interests by vitalizing Japan’s economy through promoting fair and free competition and active innovation. Competition policy is crucial to realize a “virtuous cycle of economic growth and distribution” and it is realized by the establishment of a fair competitive environment where added value is distributed appropriately. I also think that the JFTC’s role—ensuring the fair and free competition—is vital to sustain the growth of Japan’s economy and maintain social vitality.
My predecessor, Mr. Furuya, over four years and eight months, promoted competition policy that responded to rapidly changing socioeconomic conditions, including the rapid advancement of digitalization, by utilizing both enforcement and advocacy as two mutually reinforcing pillars.. Enforcement is about recovering competition through strict and appropriate measures of the Antimonopoly Act, while advocacy means fostering a competitive environment. I intend to succeed him and build on his accomplishments and continuously promote competition policy while responding to new changes rapidly and appropriately.
I would like to explain the following five concrete measures.
First, it is important to promote strict and appropriate enforcement of the Antimonopoly Act. To ensure consumers’ interests and economy’s vitalization, it is vital to take strict measures against conduct that hinders competition which is prohibited by the Antimonopoly Act. Therefore, it is necessary to take strict measures against price-fixing cartels and bid-rigging cases on products and services closely linked to people’s lives, and to conduct prompt and rigorous reviews of mergers and other business combinations.
Second, from the perspective of ensuring a fair transaction environment for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) in harsh business environment, the JFTC strictly and actively tackles unfair trade practices—including the Abuse of Superior Bargaining Position and Unjust Low-Price Sales—as well as violations of the Subcontract Act, all of which unfairly disadvantage SMEs. In addition, we believe that it is vital to implement measures to prevent those violations.
In particular, to achieve sustained structural wage increase for enterprises including SMEs, it is essential not only to improve labor productivity but also to facilitate the smooth pass-through of rising costs, such as labor cost, through the promotion of fair trade practices. The Bill to amend the Subcontract Act, including such matters, was approved and enacted in the plenary session of the House of Councillors, the National Diet of Japan. The JFTC intends to full preparation and publicity toward the enforcement on January 1, 2026.
The JFTC and the Cabinet Secretariat have been engaged in the dissemination and follow-up of the “Guidelines on Price Negotiation for Appropriate Pass-Through of Labor Cost” after its publication in November 2023. We will continue to proactively engage in collaboration and cooperation with relevant ministries and agencies to promote thorough public awareness of these Guidelines and take strict measures against abuse of a superior bargaining position and violation of the Subcontract Act.
Moreover, the Act on Improvement of Transactions between Freelancers and Undertakings (Freelance Act) was enforced in November last year. It is necessary to promote public awareness and to enforce the Freelance Act promptly and appropriately.
Third, in order to maintain the growth of Japan’s economy and keep the social vitality, it is important to foster a competitive environment, appropriately responding to socioeconomic changes, such as the progress of the digital economy and the realization of green society, and to promote innovation.
In the digital field, we continue our efforts to identify actual business conditions and to sort out issues on the Antimonopoly Act and approaches under the competition policy. In addition, it is necessary to take strict measures against anti-competitive conduct by digital platform operators. Regarding the Mobile Software Competition Act which is scheduled to be fully enforced by December this year, we will adequately prepare for its smooth implementation and the effective operation of the Act.
Moreover, in other fields, the JFTC—as the competition policy side—is actively engaging the promotion of GX through publishing the Green Guidelines to encourage the efforts of GX in enterprises. We also need to develop the competitive environment through providing recommendations and formulating guidelines while grasping various socioeconomic changes and identifying actual business conditions continuously.
Forth, as the digital economy evolves, the activities of enterprises are expanding across borders and globally. To address competitive concerns in digital markets, such as business combinations and anti-competitive conduct, there has been a greater need for collaboration and cooperation with foreign competition authorities in both law enforcement and competition policy. To that end, as newly appointed to lead Japan’s competition authority, I would like to focus on establishing relationships with foreign competition authorities and promoting those relationships.
Finally, to implement the concrete measures described above and accomplish the JFTC’s roles expected, it is necessary to strengthen the JFTC’s capacity both in terms of quality and quantity.
In addition to those measures, by listening to various comments and opinions, I intend to dedicate my best effort to accomplish the JFTC’s mission with other commissioners.
I sincerely look forward to your continued support and collaboration.
(Tentative translation)
