Japan Finance Minister Vows to Keep Eye on Fiscal Balance

By Megumi Fujikawa

TOKYO--Japan will continue to seek a balance between fiscal sustainability and economic growth, the country's finance minister said, even as ministries submitted record budget requests of nearly $918 billion.

Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama said the 143 trillion yen sum, equivalent to $917.85 billion, aligns with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's push to reduce dependence on supplementary budgets. Combined, the fiscal 2025 supplementary budget and this year's regular spending came to about Y141 trillion, meaning that the ministries' requests represent an increase of about Y2.5 trillion.

"I don't believe it is accurate to describe this as a significant increase," Katayama said at a news conference on Friday.

The remarks came amid continued concerns over Japan's fiscal sustainability, which have sparked a rise in government bond yields and weighed on the yen. Expectations for an imminent interest-rate increase by the Bank of Japan have also contributed to the upward pressure on yields, with the 10-year Japanese government bond yield recently hitting 3%--the highest level since September 1996.

Yields in Japan remain elevated, in line with other global bonds, but the yen is finally showing some signs of recovery. The currency has strengthened in recent sessions, snapping a run of persistent weakness despite historic Japan-U.S. intervention in the foreign-exchange market--an operation backed by Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.

On Friday, Katayama pushed back against speculation that Bessent was applying pressure on Japan to raise interest rates, saying that she had explained Takaichi's pursuit of both sustainable debt conditions and economic growth to him when they met on the sidelines of the Group of 20 finance chiefs' meeting.

When she showed him a local newspaper article about the topic, Bessent responded by saying "good," Katayama said.

Those expecting Katayama to comment on the yen on Friday were left waiting. The yen was last trading at 156.05 per dollar, after briefly reaching a one-month high that had been seen around the time Tokyo intervened in the foreign-exchange market in coordination with Washington.

Write to Megumi Fujikawa at megumi.fujikawa@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 03, 2026 23:43 ET (03:43 GMT)