Japan approves $216B extra budget to cushion inflation impact

By Gokhan Ergocun

ISTANBUL (AA) – Japan’s parliament approved a 28.92 trillion yen ($215.9 billion) supplementary budget on Friday to boost its economy and cushion the impact of rising inflation.

The second supplementary budget of the fiscal year aims “to help struggling households cope with accelerating inflation and support an economy facing downward pressure,” according to local news outlet Kyodo News.

Japan’s annual inflation rate was at 3.6% this October, marking a significant jump from 0.1% in October 2021.

The government aims “to limit the rise in consumer inflation by 1.2% or more,” the report said.

“As the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have raised the need for more fiscal stimulus to support the economy, massive reserve funds, which can be used at the discretion of the Cabinet without parliamentary approval, have come under greater scrutiny,” read the report.

“With the addition of 4.74 trillion yen ($35.36 billion) in the latest budget, the total amount of such reserve funds earmarked for the current year totaled 11.76 trillion yen ($87.73 billion).”​​​​​​​