Monetary and fiscal policy of Japan

This article is part of a series on

Politics of Japan

Constitution and Laws

* Constitution of Japan (1947–present)
* Meiji Constitution (1890–1947)
* Laws

The Monarchy

* The Emperor (List)

Naruhito

* Crown Prince

Fumihito

* * *

* Imperial House
* Chrysanthemum Throne
* Imperial Succession
* Imperial Household Agency

Executive

* Government

* Prime Minister (List)

Shigeru Ishiba (LDP)

* Cabinet (List)

Second Ishiba Cabinet
(LDP–Komeito coalition)

* * *

* Ministries
* Incorporated Administrative Agencies

Legislature

* National Diet

* * *

* House of Representatives

* Speaker

Fukushiro Nukaga

* Vice Speaker

Kōichirō Genba

* * *

* House of Councillors

* President

Masakazu Sekiguchi

* Vice President

Hiroyuki Nagahama

* * *

Judiciary

* Supreme Court

* Chief Justice

Yukihiko Imasaki

* Justices of the Supreme Court

* * *

* Intellectual Property High Court

Bank of Japan

* Governor

Kazuo Ueda

* * *

* Japanese yen
* Banknotes
* Coins

Elections

* List of districts of the House of Representatives of Japan
* List of districts of the House of Councillors of Japan
* Japanese House of Councillors national proportional representation block
* Political parties

Japanese general elections

* * *

* 1890
* 1892
* 1894 (Mar)
* 1894 (Sep)
* 1898 (Mar)
* 1898 (Aug)
* 1902
* 1903
* 1904
* 1908
* 1912
* 1915
* 1917
* 1920
* 1924
* 1928
* 1930
* 1932
* 1936
* 1937
* 1942
* 1946
* 1947
* 1949
* 1952
* 1953
* 1955
* 1958
* 1960
* 1963
* 1967
* 1969
* 1972
* 1976
* 1979
* 1980
* 1983
* 1986
* 1990
* 1993
* 1996
* 2000
* 2003
* 2005
* 2009
* 2012
* 2014
* 2017
* 2021
* 2024

Japanese House of Councillors elections

* * *

* 1947
* 1950
* 1953
* 1956
* 1959
* 1962
* 1965
* 1968
* 1971
* 1974
* 1977
* 1980
* 1983
* 1986
* 1989
* 1992
* 1995
* 1998
* 2001
* 2004
* 2007
* 2010
* 2013
* 2016
* 2019
* 2022
* 2025

Unified local elections

* * *

* 2007
* 2011
* 2015
* 2019
* 2023

Administrative divisions

* Prefectures
* Governors (List)

* * *

* Subprefectures
* Districts
* Municipalities
* Submunicipalities

Foreign relations

* Ministry of Foreign Affairs
* Foreign policy (history)

* * *

* Diplomatic missions of / in Japan

* * *

* Japanese passport
* Visa requirements
* Visa policy

* * *

* Algeria
* Angola
* Djibouti
* Egypt
* Ethiopia
* Kenya
* Namibia
* Nigeria
* Somalia
* South Africa
* Argentina
* Barbados
* Bolivia
* Brazil
* Canada
* Chile
* Colombia
* Ecuador
* Mexico
* Paraguay
* Peru
* Trinidad and Tobago
* United States
* Uruguay
* Venezuela
* Afghanistan
* Armenia
* Azerbaijan
* Bahrain
* Bangladesh
* Bhutan
* Brunei
* Cambodia
* China
* East Timor
* Georgia
* India
* Indonesia
* Iran
* Israel
* Laos
* Malaysia
* Maldives
* Mongolia
* Myanmar
* Nepal
* North Korea
* Pakistan
* Palestine
* Philippines
* Qatar
* Saudi Arabia
* Singapore
* South Korea
* Sri Lanka
* Taiwan
* Thailand
* Turkey
* Vietnam
* Albania
* Austria
* Belgium
* Croatia
* Czech Republic
* Denmark
* France
* Germany
* Greece
* Hungary
* Holy See
* Iceland
* Ireland
* Italy
* Kosovo
* Lithuania
* Malta
* Montenegro
* Netherlands
* Poland
* Portugal
* Russia
* Serbia
* Spain
* Sweden
* Ukraine
* United Kingdom
* Australia
* Fiji
* New Zealand
* Palau
* Tonga

* * *

* Africa
* Arab world
* Latin America
* Oceania
* Southeast Asia
* European Union

* * *

* United Nations

* * *

* G20
* G7

Japan portal

* Other countries

* v
* t
* e

Japan bonds

Inverted yield curve in 1990
Zero interest-rate policy started in 1999[1]

30 year

20 year

10 year

5 year

2 year

1 year

Japan money supply and inflation (year over year)

M2 money supply

Inflation

Monetary policy pertains to the regulation, availability, and cost of credit, while Fiscal policy deals with government expenditures, taxes, and debt. Through management of these areas, the Ministry of Finance regulated the allocation of resources in the economy, affected the distribution of income and wealth among the citizenry, stabilized the level of economic activities, and promoted economic growth and welfare.

The Ministry of Finance played an important role in Japan's postwar economic growth. It advocated a "growth first" approach, with a high proportion of government spending going to capital accumulation, and minimum government spending overall, which kept both taxes and deficit spending down, making more money available for private investment. Most Japanese put money into savings accounts, mostly postal savings.

## Budget process

[edit]

The Budget Bureau of the Ministry of Finance is at the heart of the political process because it draws up the national budget each year. This responsibility makes it the ultimate focus of interest groups and of other ministries that compete for limited funds. The budgetary process generally begins soon after the start of a new fiscal year on April 1. Ministries and government agencies prepare budget requests in consultation with the Policy Research Council.

In the fall of each year, Budget Bureau examiners reviews these requests in great detail, while top Ministry of Finance officials work out the general contours of the new budget and the distribution of tax revenues. During the winter, after the release of the ministry's draft budget, campaigning by individual Diet members for their constituents and different ministries for revisions and supplementary allocations becomes intense. The coalition leaders and Ministry of Finance officials consult on a final draft budget, which is generally passed by the Diet in late winter.

In broad outline, the process reveals a basic characteristic of Japanese political dynamics: that despite the oft-stated ideals of "harmony" and "consensus," interests, including bureaucratic interests, are in strong competition for resources. Political leaders and Budget Bureau officials need great skill to reach mutually acceptable compromises. The image of "Japan Incorporated," in which harmony and unanimity are virtually automatic, belies the reality of intense rivalry. The late-twentieth-century system is successful insofar as political skills and appreciation of common interests minimize antagonisms and maintain a balance of power among groups. It is unclear, however, whether this system will continue as Japan faces such problems as growing social inequality and an aging society.

## National debt

[edit]

Japanese Bond Market
Negative interest rates started in 2014

40 year bond

10 year bond

5 year bond

1 year bond

1 month bond

Main article: National debt of Japan

In 2011 Japan's public debt was about 230 percent of its annual gross domestic product, the largest percentage of any nation in the world.[2]

In order to address the Japanese budget gap and growing national debt, in June 2012 the Japanese Diet passed a bill to double the national consumption tax to 10%.[3] The new bill increases the tax to 8% by April 2014 and 10% by October 2015. However, it was delayed until at least October 2019.[4]

## See also

[edit]

* Defense budget of Japan
* Ministry of Finance (Japan)
* Bank of Japan

## References

[edit]

1. ^ https://www.weforum.org/stories/2024/03/japan-ends-negative-interest-rates-economy-monetary-policy/#:~:text=“BOJ%20decided%20to%20implement%20a,%2C%20namely%200.25%20to%200.5%25. [bare URL]
2. ^ Public debt, International Monetary Fund, April 2012 World Economic Outlook Database.
3. ^ Asahi Shimbun UPDATE: Lower House passes bills to double consumption tax Archived 2013-06-22 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved on July 4, 2012
4. ^ Daily Yomiuri website Lower house OK's tax hike bills / 57 DPJ lawmakers rebel against vote; Ozawa 'studying various options' Archived June 27, 2012, at the Wayback Machine Retrieved on July 4, 2012

* This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain. Country Studies. Federal Research Division. \- Japan

## External links

[edit]

* Bank of Japan's (BOJ) - Bank Rate since 1985 (on a monthly basis)
* The Japan Tax Site - Japanese fiscal policy and Japanese tax issues Archived 2012-03-01 at the Wayback Machine

* v
* t
* e

Economy of Japan

History|

* Economic history of Japan
* Foreign commerce and shipping of the Empire of Japan
* Agriculture in the Empire of Japan
* Income Doubling Plan
* Japanese economic miracle
* Japanese asset price bubble
* Lost Decades
* Japan–South Korea trade dispute
* Zaibatsu
* Keiretsu

Policy|

* Monetary and fiscal policy of Japan
* Industrial policy of Japan
* Trade policy of Japan
* Taxation

Currency|

* Bank of Japan
* Banknotes of the Japanese yen
* Japan Mint
* Japanese yen
* National Printing Bureau
* Tokugawa coinage
* Scrip of Edo period Japan

Banking and finance|

* Nikkei 225
* Osaka Exchange
* Tokyo Stock Exchange
* Capital flows in Japan
* Financial services in Japan
* Japanese financial system
* Japan Investment Corporation

Government agencies|

* Development Bank of Japan
* Fair Trade Commission
* Financial Services Agency
* Japan External Trade Organization
* Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
* Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry
* Ministry of Finance
* National Tax Agency
* Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism

Labor market|

* Japanese labour law
* Japanese management culture
* Japanese work environment
* Labor market
* Labor unions
* Simultaneous recruiting of new graduates
* Shūshin koyō
* Nenko System
* Salaryman

Energy|

* Energy in Japan
* Solar power in Japan
* List of Japanese natural gas companies
* List of power stations in Japan

Rankings|

* International rankings of Japan
* List of largest companies
* Prefectures by GDP
* Prefectures by GDP per capita

Industry|

* Agriculture, forestry, and fishing
* Automotive
* domestic market
* Construction
* Defense
* Electronics
* Manufacturing
* Mining
* Private enterprise
* Public corporations
* Transport
* Whaling

Associations|

* Japan Association of Corporate Executives
* Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association
* Japan Business Federation

Other topics|

* Amakudari
* Economic relations of Japan
* Government-business relations in Japan
* List of exports of Japan
* National debt of Japan
* Nekonomics
* Nemawashi
* Research and development in Japan
* Science and technology in Japan
* Standard of living in Japan

Authority control databases

National|

* United States
* Israel

Other|

* Yale LUX

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template