Arab News Headlines

Japan Parliament Enacts Record $870 Billion Budget for FY 2023

Japan’s parliament on Tuesday enacted a record 114.38 trillion yen ($870 billion) budget for the new fiscal year from April to beef up defense capabilities in the face of security threats and to support the economy, which has been struggling with inflation.

The defense budget will reach 6.82 trillion yen, the largest on record, Japan’s (Kyodo) news agency reported, adding that fiscal 2023 marks the start of a five-year period intended to fundamentally revamp the country’s defense posture by spending a combined 43 trillion yen to cope with threats.

The government of the Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida is aiming to double its annual defense budget to around 2 percent of gross domestic product from the current 1 percent while upholding its postwar pacifist credo.

The approval of the state budget by the House of Councillors comes at a time when the debt-ridden nation has been ramping up spending to ease the burden put on households by rising prices of everyday goods. Core consumer inflation has already hit a four-decade high, mostly due to higher energy and raw material costs amplified by a weaker yen.

Source: Qatar News Agency