TOKYO (AP) – Japan approved a JPY39 trillion (USD250 billion) economic stimulus package yesterday centred around initiatives it said were aimed at boosting individual incomes.
The broad plan passed by the Cabinet is the centerpiece of Japan Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s recently installed administration. It provides support for digital innovation in the world’s fourth largest economy, subsidies to defray for rising energy costs and help for low-income households.
The plan is designed to instill a sense of “well being” in the Japanese people, the government said, using the English phrase.
Although Japan has managed weak growth in recent quarters, the long-term outlook for the economy and for the country’s standing in the world is uncertain. The plan includes measures to address the country’s falling birthrate, which is one of the lowest among developed nations, help for working women and for the elderly.
The plan also calls for raising the annual tax-free salary threshold from the current JPY1.03 million (USD6,640). The new ceiling is not yet decided. But a level of JPY1.78 million (USD11,500) has been proposed.
“During the past 30 years, our nation has overcome various challenges, including deflation and confusion that followed the burst of the ‘bubble economy,’ the global financial crisis, various natural disasters and the difficulties stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic,” documents provided by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said.