TOKYO: Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's government on Wednesday (June 3) finalised a US$19 billion supplementary budget for this fiscal year to cushion the impact of rising energy costs on households amid the risk of a prolonged Middle East crisis.
The 3.1 trillion yen (US$19.47 billion) extra budget will be funded entirely through deficit-financing bonds, with the government seeking to avoid increasing overall bond issuance to the market by offsetting it with stronger tax revenues and non-tax income.
The additional spending will primarily replenish contingency reserves used to subsidise gasoline costs and utility bills as tensions in the Middle East continue. - Reuters
