Having spent more than three years and trillions of dollars in a losing battle against deflation, the Bank of Japan is hoping that a little financial education will convince a nation of inveterate savers to put their cash to better use.
More than half of Japan's ¥1,746 trillion ($15.2 trillion) in financial assets are held in cash or deposits, compared with 15 percent for the United States, and even in elementary school, nearly two-thirds of children save their pocket money rather than spend it, according to a survey.
That attitude has resisted the BOJ's unprecedented monetary easing program, currently running at ¥80 trillion a year, which was designed to lift prices, encourage consumption, and get the economy moving after decades of deflation and stagnation.