Japan’s stimulus reportedly adding US$192bil to debt pile

Kishida, who had been known for being fiscally cautious, surprised investors last week by unveiling a record fiscal package of 56 trillion yen (RM2.1 trillion), following a report days earlier that the economy shrank last quarter for the fifth time in eight quarters.

TOKYO: Japan plans to issue 22.1 trillion yen (US$192bil or RM808bil) in bonds to help pay for another extra budget in the pandemic, as Prime Minister Fumio Kishida looks to shore up the recovery before next year’s elections, the Nikkei newspaper reported yesterday.

Some six trillion yen (RM220bil) carried over from previous stimulus and another roughly six trillion yen (RM220bil) in unexpected tax revenue weren’t enough to cover the general expenditures of a 36 trillion yen (RM1.3 trillion) extra budget put together to finance Kishida’s stimulus plan, the Nikkei said, without identifying where it got the information.