Budget requests from government ministries and agencies for fiscal 2019 reached a record-high ¥102.5 trillion ($923 billion) amid snowballing social security costs and increasing defense spending, officials said Friday.
The figure suggests that the initial general account budget for the year beginning next April could top ¥100 trillion for the first time, making it all the more difficult for the government to achieve fiscal consolidation.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's administration is also preparing an additional fiscal stimulus package aimed at underpinning domestic demand after a planned consumption tax hike in October 2019.