1986 in Japan was the first year of the Japanese asset price bubble.
Government incumbents
Emperor: Hirohito
Prime Minister: Yasuhiro Nakasone (L–Gunma)
Chief Cabinet Secretary: Masaharu Gotōda (L–Tokushima) Chief Justice of the Supreme Court: Kōichi Yaguchi President of the House of Representatives: Michita Sakata (L–Kumamoto) until June 2, Kenzaburō Hara (L–Hyōgo) from July 22 President of the House of Councillors: Mutsuo Kimura (L–Okayama) until July 22, Masaaki Fujita (L–Hiroshima) Diet sessions: 104th (regular session opened in December 1985, to May 22), 105th (extraordinary, June 2), 106th (special, July 22 to July 25), 107th (extraordinary, September 11 to December 20), 108th (regular, December 29 to 1987, May 27)
Governors
Aichi Prefecture: Reiji Suzuki
Akita Prefecture: Kikuji Sasaki
Aomori Prefecture: Masaya Kitamura
Chiba Prefecture: Takeshi Numata
Ehime Prefecture: Haruki Shiraishi
Fukui Prefecture: Heidayū Nakagawa
Fukuoka Prefecture: Hachiji Okuda
Fukushima Prefecture: Isao Matsudaira
Gifu Prefecture: Yosuke Uematsu
Gunma Prefecture: Ichiro Shimizu
Hiroshima Prefecture: Toranosuke Takeshita
Hokkaido: Takahiro Yokomichi
Hyogo Prefecture: Tokitada Sakai (until 23 November); Toshitami Kaihara (starting 24 November) Ibaraki Prefecture: Fujio Takeuchi Ishikawa Prefecture: Yōichi Nakanishi Iwate Prefecture: Kagawa Prefecture: Tadao Maekawa (until 4 September); Jōichi Hirai (starting 5 September) Kagoshima Prefecture: Kaname Kamada Kanagawa Prefecture: Kazuji Nagasu Kochi Prefecture: Chikara Nakauchi Kumamoto Prefecture: Morihiro Hosokawa Kyoto Prefecture: Yukio Hayashida (until 15 April); Teiichi Aramaki (starting 16 April) Mie Prefecture: Ryōzō Tagawa Miyagi Prefecture: Sōichirō Yamamoto Miyazaki Prefecture: Suketaka Matsukata Nagano Prefecture: Gorō Yoshimura Nagasaki Prefecture: Isamu Takada Nara Prefecture: Shigekiyo Ueda Niigata Prefecture: Takeo Kimi Oita Prefecture: Morihiko Hiramatsu Okayama Prefecture: Shiro Nagano Okinawa Prefecture: Junji Nishime Osaka Prefecture: Sakae Kishi Saga Prefecture: Kumao Katsuki Saitama Prefecture: Yawara Hata Shiga Prefecture: Masayoshi Takemura (until 16 June); Minoru Inaba (starting 20 July) Shiname Prefecture: Seiji Tsunematsu Shizuoka Prefecture: Keizaburō Yamamoto (until 6 July); Shigeyoshi Saitō (starting 7 July) Tochigi Prefecture: Fumio Watanabe Tokushima Prefecture: Shinzo Miki Tokyo: Shun'ichi Suzuki Tottori Prefecture: Yuji Nishio Toyama Prefecture: Yutaka Nakaoki Wakayama Prefecture: Shirō Kariya Yamagata Prefecture: Seiichirō Itagaki Yamaguchi Prefecture: Toru Hirai Yamanashi Prefecture: Kōmei Mochizuki
Events
January 6: Major snowfall strikes Western Japan. Kagoshima was blanketed with 20 cm of snow. January 26: An avalanche hit Maseguchi, Mount Gongen, Niigata Prefecture. According to an official report of the Fire and Disaster Management Agency, 13 people died and 9 others were injured. February 11: A fire broke out in a hotel in Higashiizu, Shizuoka Prefecture killing 24 people. March 23: Recorded snowfall in Tokyo area leads to a train collision on the Seibu Shinjuku Line. April: The Japanese Equal Employment Opportunity Law went into effect. This law prohibits gender discrimination with respect to vocational training, fringe benefits, retirement, and dismissal, and urges firms to try to equalise opportunity with regard to recruitment, hiring, job assignments, and promotion. May 4–6 1986 G7 Summit held in Tokyo. July 6: Simultaneous elections for both houses of the Diet. July 22: Third Nakasone cabinet announced. August 2: The first Studio Ghibli film, "Laputa: Castle in the Sky", was released. August 5: Heavy torrential rain with floods hit the Abukuma River and surrounding area in Fukushima Prefecture. The Japan Fire Department Management Agency confirmed 20 people died and 107 were injured. September 6: Takako Doi becomes the president of the Japan Socialist Party. She was the first female party leader in Japanese history. November 1: According to Japan National Police Agency official confirmed report, seven religious group member burned bodies and mass suicide occurs on beach in Wakayama City. December 9: Beat Takeshi and his troupe were arrested for an attack on the editors of Friday magazine. December 28: According to former Japan Transport Ministry official confirmed report, a violent storm hit and damage on not in service train in Amarube Viaduct, Sanin Line, Hyogo Prefecture, total six persons were lost to lives, another six persons were wounded.