1st Ishiba Cabinet Members' Assets Average 72.45 M. Yen

Tokyo, Nov. 22 (Jiji Press)--The average value of assets held by 19 ministers in Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's first cabinet stood at 72.45 million yen, the government said Friday.

According to data on assets held by the cabinet ministers and their family members as of Oct. 1, when the administration was launched, five ministers had assets exceeding 100 million yen, of whom three had over 200 million yen.

Ishiba has since formed a new cabinet, following a general election on Oct. 27.

Then land minister Tetsuo Saito, who later became leader of Komeito, the junior party in the ruling coalition led by Ishiba's Liberal Democratic Party, was the top asset holder at 238.38 million yen.

Ishiba himself came in 12th at 33.77 million yen. His assets included 15.55 million yen in real estate in his home city of Tottori, western Japan, one automobile and a total of 23,925 shares of seven firms including Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd. and Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. His wife held 9.31 million yen in real estate and 8.9 million yen in financial assets.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]