The Cabinet of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe on Tuesday approved a record-high 92.61 trillion yen (about 1.02 trillion U.S. dollars) initial general- account budget for the fiscal year 2013 starting in April.
Tax revenues are expected to hit 43.10 trillion yen in fiscal 2013, exceeding new government bond issuance, at 42.85 trillion yen, for the first time in four years. Non-tax revenue is expected to reach 4.05 trillion yen, according to reports. The total size of the initial budget for the new fiscal year starting April 1 is higher than the previous initial-budget record of 92.41 trillion yen in fiscal 2011.
But with 46.3 percent of the budget to be financed by new bond issuance, Analysts have said Abe will likely need to quickly hammer out a plan for restoring Japan's precarious fiscal health, already the worst among major developed countries, said local news agency.