Japan's Takaichi Reshuffles Cabinet, Keeps Key Ministers

Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi carried out her first cabinet reshuffle on September 17, 2026, keeping key ministers in place while giving a post to a coalition ally. The reshuffle signals continuity and confidence to markets, and it fires the starting gun for the ruling LDP's leadership race. In a related move, Takaichi plans to appoint Kazuo Yanagimoto as agriculture minister, marking the first cabinet entry for someone involved in a funding scandal. Yanagimoto failed to report 17.46 million yen in political funds.