Japan Negotiates 1,093 Trillion Yen Budget for Next Year... Defense Spending 65 Trillion Yen 'Record High'

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida
[Photo by AP]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeong Hyunjin] According to reports by Nihon Keizai Shimbun and others on the 19th, the Japanese government is finalizing plans to set next year's budget at just over 114 trillion yen (approximately 1,093 trillion won), an increase of more than 6% compared to this year.

The budget, expected to mark the highest level for the 11th consecutive year, is anticipated to include the largest-ever defense spending.

According to the reports, ahead of the cabinet meeting scheduled for the 23rd, the Japanese government is finalizing the general account budget for fiscal year 2023 (April 2023 to March 2024) based on this plan. This amount is about 6 trillion yen more than the fiscal year 2022 budget. The Japanese government’s budget has exceeded 100 trillion yen for five consecutive years.

Nihon Keizai stated, "Although tax revenue is expected to reach a record high of 69.4 trillion yen, it is not keeping pace with the increase in expenditures," adding, "It appears that new government bonds in the mid-35 trillion yen range will be issued to supplement the budget."

Defense spending in the budget is expected to be set at a record high of 6.8 trillion yen (approximately 65 trillion won), including costs for the U.S. military realignment. This is more than 1.25 times the amount of the current fiscal year. The Japanese government plans to set the total defense budget at 43 trillion yen over the next five years, starting from fiscal year 2023, the first year of strengthening defense capabilities.

The Japanese government will establish a "Defense Capability Enhancement Fund" to utilize part of these resources over multiple years. This fund, created from non-tax revenue and other sources, is planned to allocate 4.6 trillion yen in fiscal year 2023. Even if the fund is not fully used in fiscal year 2023, the government intends to continue using it as a source of defense funding.

Asahi Shimbun reported that social security expenses are expected to increase by 560 billion yen due to natural growth from aging.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.