New BOJ Chief’s First Task Will Be to Keep Speculators at Bay

Kazuo Ueda, the surprise pick to become the Bank of Japan’s next governor, will be tasked with keeping confidence in the BOJ’s policy path without jarring global markets and heaping strain on the finances of a government that just can’t stop spending.

Given the tricky mission ahead, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida was widely expected to opt for the safest pair of hands he could find: Masayoshi Amamiya, the longtime favorite among economists to land the post. But instead Ueda, a university professor and MIT PhD, is now set for the top slot, according to people familiar with the matter.