TOKYO (Reuters) – Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba will instruct his cabinet as early as next week to compile a supplementary budget to cushion the economic blow from rising living costs and U.S. tariffs, Kyodo news agency reported on Friday.
While spending plans have yet to be laid out, ideas being discussed include restarting subsidies aimed at curbing utility bills and expanding subsidies for purchases of electric vehicles, Kyodo said, citing an anonymous source.
If the government introduces blanket cash payouts as proposed by some ruling party lawmakers, it will involve several trillion yen’s worth of spending in the supplementary budget for the current fiscal year, according to the report.
The move comes ahead of Upper House elections scheduled for July, in which Ishiba’s ruling coalition is expected to struggle due to the prime minister’s low approval ratings.
(Reporting by Leika Kihara; Editing by Sharon Singleton)
