The nation's current account balance was in the black for the first time in two months in July, hitting ¥416.7 billion as the income from foreign investments rose to a record high for the month, outweighing the trade deficit, the government said Monday. Imports increased ...
The Abe administration will compile another extra budget to mitigate the economic impact of the October 29015 tax hike, Finance Minister Taro Aso indicated on Friday. "It is necessary to prepare to craft a supplementary budget" this fiscal year, Aso said while expressing his eagerness ...
Auto sales tumbled to a three-year low last month, the latest sign that consumer spending is slumping following the April 1 consumption tax increase. Vehicle deliveries fell 9.1 percent from a year earlier to 333,471, the lowest since August 2011, according to industry figures released ...
Additional sales tax hike difficult decision for Abe: adviser
Japan's additional consumption tax hike planned for next year is a hard decision for Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to make, given a slowdown in the nation's economic recovery, one of his advisers said Wednesday. Etsuro Honda, a special adviser on economic affairs, also indicated the ...
Skepticism over Abe's inflation goal grows as price gauge retreats
Traders are growing more skeptical Prime Minister Shinzo Abe will achieve his 2 percent inflation target after a sales tax increase derailed growth. The 10-year break-even rate, a gauge of expectations for consumer-price gains in inflation-linked bonds, dropped to 1.16 percent Tuesday, the lowest close ...
Energy, food costs pushed Japan's wholesale prices higher in July
Wholesale prices rose 4.3 percent in July from a year earlier largely due to higher energy costs and price increases for some food items, the Bank of Japan said Tuesday. The result was almost in line with market forecasts. Corporate goods prices rose for the ...
An index of indicators used to predict future economic conditions fell in May for the fourth straight month May, with the first consumption tax hike in 17 years denting optimism, the government said Monday. The index of leading indicators, which predicts economic developments in the ...
Core private-sector machinery orders plunged a seasonally adjusted 9.1 percent in April compared with the previous month, with the first consumption tax hike in 17 years blurring the economic outlook, the government said Thursday. Core orders, excluding those for ships and from utilities because of ...
Failure to up sales tax risks crash of JGBs: Sakakibara
The government should prioritize expanding its recent sales tax increase or risk an eventual collapse of sovereign bonds, former Finance Ministry official Eisuke Sakakibara said. A failure to raise the consumption levy "could trigger massive dumping" of the nation's debt, Sakakibara said in an interview ...
Shoppers start coping with higher sales tax
Tuesday's hike of the consumption tax to 8 percent saw mixed reactions in Tokyo and Osaka. While consumers in both cities seemed resigned to the increase, there was concern about the additional transportation and food costs. In Osaka, as in other parts of the country, ...
Hidden tax hike surprises await unwary consumers
Tuesday's consumption tax hike will in principle affect all domestic purchases of goods or services, but there are still gray areas where consumers may get surprised by unexpected levies, government officials warn. The consumption tax reform law, part of integrated social security and tax changes ...
