Japan’s ruling coalition and government are considering whether to raise the subsidy ceiling for fuel wholesalers from 25 yen ($0.19) per litre, the Asahi newspaper reported on Wednesday. The expansion of fuel subsidies is part of the emergency relief measures to be compiled by Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s cabinet by end-April to ease the pain of surging costs of living.
The ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and its small coalition ally Komeito on Tuesday agreed to pigeonhole gasoline tax cuts proposed by a centre-left opposition, but the two have not yet agreed on how to finance the relief package. Komeito leader Natsuo Yamaguchi, who has repeatedly called for the compilation of an extra budget before the parliament session ends in mid-June, will meet Kishida later in the day, likely to discuss the funding issue, broadcaster NHK reported.
The LDP has resisted calls for an extra budget, wanting instead to tap budget reserves of up to 5.5 trillion yen ($43 billion) in order to quickly roll out aid before the administration faces an upper house election this summer. In the relief package, the government is also mulling over spending 1.5 trillion yen from budget reserves to hand out 100,000 yen cash payouts to lower-income families, the Yomiuri newspaper reported on Wednesday.
For Japan’s economy, which relies on imports for about 90% of its energy needs, rising costs of energy and raw materials are particularly painful, fuelled by the yen’s recent rapid weakening. ($1 = 129.1600 yen)
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