Household and company assets up in September as virus slowed spending

Assets held by households in Japan hit a record ¥1,901 trillion ($18 trillion) at the end of September, up 2.7% from a year earlier, as the COVID-19 pandemic weakened consumption and left people with more cash and deposits, the Bank of Japan said Monday.

The expansion followed a cash handout program in which the government gave ¥100,000 to each person to help cushion the economic impact from the pandemic. The result suggests that rather than splash out, consumers instead added to savings.

The total of assets held in cash and deposits increased at the fastest pace of 4.9% to ¥1,034 trillion, also the largest on record and which accounts for 54.4% of overall assets held by Japanese households.