Japan Plans Post-Quake Spending Bill as Fiscal Risk Rises

Prime Minister Naoto Kan, battling what he called Japan’s worst crisis since the end of World War II, plans a post-earthquake rebuilding package, a step that may worsen the challenge of curbing the world’s biggest public debt.

Policy makers will need to compile a spending bill “over the medium to long-term” to cope with the aftermath of the 8.9-magnitude earthquake and the tsunami it triggered, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano told NHK Television. For now, officials will use about 200 billion yen ($2.4 billion) left over from the budget for the fiscal year ending March 31, he said.