Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzō Abe announced this weekend that the country’s $1.2trn (€1trn) Government Pension Investment Fund, the largest asset owner in the world, has signed up to the United Nations-supported Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI) – the move will mean it will ask its external managers whether they are also signed up. It means that Japan will now have seven asset owner PRI signatories. In total there are now 35 signatories across all categories in the country. The GPIF has also made some moves in the responsible investment space; last year it awarded contracts to QUICK, MSCI ESG Research and Ernst & Young to undertake research into ESG and stewardship.