Japan downgrades economy assessment to 'worsening' for first time in four months
The government on Monday downgraded its assessment of the economy for August, saying it is "worsening" after being hit by sluggish production and exports due partly to lingering U.S.-China trade tensions. It was the first time in four months officials used the word "worsening." The downgrade ...
Ruling, opposition camps switch into campaign mode day after election date confirmed
A day after Prime Minister Shinzo Abe set July 10 as the date for the upcoming Upper House election, the nation's ruling and opposition parties wasted no time Thursday launching into campaign mode. Opposition parties are forming an uncharacteristically united front in an attempt to ...
As voters welcome Japan's tax-hike delay, experts warn on costs
Economy mavens are split over the merits of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s decision to delay the consumption tax hike to 2019.
G-7 broadly agrees on ways to spur growth
Leaders agree to better cooperate on fiscal measures, but they remain sharply divided on how much each country should spend.
U.S. Treasury report calls out 'Abenomics' for failings on reform, demand
Japan should undertake structural economic reforms that will lead to a recovery driven by private demand, the U.S. Treasury Department said in its semiannual Report to Congress on International Economic and Exchange Rate Policies. . It is imperative for both the Japanese and global economies that ...
Bad weather may have slashed economic growth in July-September
Bad weather this summer, including successive typhoons, may have pushed economic growth down by 0.8 percentage point to 2.4 points in annualized real terms in the July-September quarter, the government said. The estimate, presented Wednesday by the Cabinet Office to a meeting of the Council ...
Government retains view on economy but wary of shock from tax hike
The government on Tuesday kept intact its relatively upbeat assessment of the economy in its monthly report for August, but it expressed concern over the aftermath of the consumption tax hike to 8 percent. "The Japanese economy is on a moderate recovery trend and the ...
The government has hired around 600 special investigators to prevent big businesses from passing the latest consumption tax increase on to their suppliers and contractors, but many small businesses are facing increasingly subtle billing and payment schemes from clients. In Tokyo's Ota Ward, home to ...
Shoppers flock to stores ahead of sales tax hike
Consumers flock to stores to make last-minute purchases of luxury and sundry goods ahead of the first sales tax hike in 17 years.
Many major department stores are zeroing in on foreign tourists and other visitors exempt from paying the consumption tax if they spend over a certain amount, anticipating that sales of luxury items will plunge following the sales tax hike next Tuesday. Department stores have enjoyed ...
Analysts split on fiscal crisis timeline
Economists are split over how long the government has to rein in the world's biggest debt burden, a Bloomberg News survey shows, adding to a debate on whether the government should keep ratcheting up the sales tax. Eleven of 34 analysts said the government has ...
