Robert Besser
07 Dec 2022, 10:37 GMT+10
TOKYO, Japan: Beginning in April, Japan will allocate 40 trillion to 43 trillion yen ($295 billion-$318 billion) over five years for defense spending.
The plans is 27.5 trillion yen more than the current five-year defense plan, causing concerns about one of the worst debt burdens in the developed world, amounting to twice the country's annual economic output.
In response to the increasing assertiveness of Beijing, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida instructed Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki and Defence Minister Yasukazu Hamada to draft a defense spending plan that will allocate 2 percent of GDP over five years, compared with the current 1 percent.
Suzuki and Hamada are expected to again meet with Kishida this month to agree on the spending plan's details.
"It will not be critical to spend some 40 trillion yen. The question is whether the government could secure funding sources and whether we can let the money flow through domestic defense and related industries to back the economy," said Takuya Hoshino, senior economist at Dai-ichi Life Research Institute, as quoted by Reuters.
"If we spend the money to buy weapons and other military goods overseas, that would trigger capital outflows and yen depreciation," he added.
Reuters reported that due to opposition from many lawmakers against tax increases, Japan is expected to delay the spending increase for at least one year, which would offer fewer options to secure funding for boosting military spending.
Get a daily dose of Maryland Leader news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Maryland Leader.
More InformationEAST PALESTINE, Ohio: After a freight train carrying hazardous chemicals derailed in Ohio near the Pennsylvania state line on February ...
Rescue teams in Turkey and Syria continue the search for survivors of the catastrophic earthquake that hit the region on ...
WASHINGTON D.C.: The Biden administration has indicated that it could end federal protection for grizzly bears in the northern Rocky ...
MANILA, Philippines: The Philippines has granted the United States four more locations to open military bases, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd ...
WASHINGTON, DC - The global community has extended aid to Turkey and Syria following the devastating earthquakes that hit the ...
WASHINGTON D.C.: US lawmakers have called on the Department of Energy to release documents detailing attempts by Russian hackers to ...
TORRANCE, California: Due to un-repaired Takata air bag inflators that can explode and unleash potentially deadly metal shrapnel inside vehicles, ...
NEW YORK, New York - After a day of major gains, U.S. stock markets fell sharply Wednesday underscoring volatility as ...
CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida: In a tweet this weekend, Elon Musk said that SpaceX may attempt a Starship rocket system launch ...
LONDON, England: The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders has reported that new car registrations in the UK rose for ...
TAIPEI, Taiwan: After the end of COVID-19 disruptions in China, Taiwan's Foxconn, the world's largest contract electronics maker and major ...
NEW YORK, New York - Stocks ended sharply higher on Tuesday following mixed comments by Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell.Powell ...