Japan to Add Short-Term Debt to Fund Takaichi’s Package

Japan plans to increase its issuance of short-term debt to help finance Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s economic package, a move that comes as markets grow uneasy about fiscal discipline and upward pressure on super-long yields.

The cabinet approved Friday a ¥18.3 trillion ($117 billion) extra budget to fund the largest round of fresh spending in a stimulus package since the scaling back of pandemic restrictions. Of that total, ¥11.7 trillion will be covered by fresh debt, according to the Finance Ministry. The figures matched numbers in a draft of the budget seen Thursday by Bloomberg News.