Tag - spending

 
 

SPENDING

EDITORIALS
Apr 2, 2014
Tax hike alone won't cure fiscal ills
The consumption tax hike alone won't resolve the nation's fiscal and social security woes. It needs to be matched by efforts to rein in government spending.
BUSINESS
Apr 1, 2014
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.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 28, 2014
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.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 28, 2014
Spending logs surprise fall as price pressures rise
Consumers unexpectedly reduce spending two months before the nation's first sales tax hike since 1997 — potential sign that emerging inflationary pressures are undermining purchasing power.
EDITORIALS
Mar 25, 2014
'Abenomics' after the tax hike
Uncertainties are deepening with regard to the course of Japan's economy after the three-percentage-point sales tax hike takes effect in April. Meanwhile, 'Abenomics' appears to be losing steam.
EDITORIALS
Mar 11, 2014
No need to break the budget
Consumers would be wise to resist the urge to break their household budget with high-end purchases before the sales tax rises by three percentage points April 1. That's because manufacturers are likely to remain as keen as ever to keep their prices competitive after the tax hike.
EDITORIALS
Mar 6, 2014
Trimming U.S. military spending
The headline-grabbing cuts in America's 2015 fiscal budget, unveiled by President Barack Obama this week, involve the downsizing of the U.S. military. The plans are controversial in light of recent events on the Crimean Peninsula and the so-called rebalance of U.S. forces to the Asia-Pacific region.
EDITORIALS
Feb 19, 2014
Data highlights fragility of recovery
The uptick in Japanese consumer spending in the fourth quarter of 2013 should be regarded as a result of the rush to make purchases before the consumption tax rises from 5 to 8 percent, beginning in April, rather than as an optimistic sign of economic recovery.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Companies
Feb 4, 2014
Toyota cash mountain draws calls for plants
Toyota Motor Corp. President Akio Toyoda, whose company has accumulated a cash pile of almost ¥4 trillion, is facing calls to put that money to better use.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Jan 3, 2014
Economy faces headwinds in 2014
The first stage of the sales tax hike next April will likely put a major drag on growth this year, although the nation will avert an outright recession, economists say.
COMMENTARY / World
Dec 9, 2013
The revival of a Great Depression-era retread
Paul Krugman and other economists now advocate the kinds of things Keynesians typically promote to stabilize the economy during a recession to become a permanent part of the U.S. fiscal architecture.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 17, 2013
Machinery orders jump 14.2%, sharpest since '05
Core private-sector machinery orders jumped a seasonally adjusted 14.2 percent in March, indicating the weaker yen and higher stocks are starting to prompt companies to boost investment, the government said Friday.

Longform

Sumadori Bar on Shibuya Ward's main Center Gai street targets young customers who prefer low-alcohol drinks or abstain altogether.
Rethinking that second drink: Japan’s Gen Z gets ‘sober curious’