Japan lawmakers discuss big stimulus to offset 2017 tax hike - BBG

As Bloomberg reports, senior Japanese Liberal Democratic Party legislator, Kozo Yamamoto, who has advised Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, plans to submit a proposal Friday for as much as an extra 30 trillion yen ($273 billion) in supplementary fiscal measures over the 2016 and 2017 fiscal years against a backdrop of Japan’s debate over whether to go ahead with a 2017 sales-tax increase.

Mr. Yamamoto noted, "It is obvious that simply announcing a delay will not improve the economy. We need to remove uncertainty as far as possible and introduce policies that bolster weak demand."

His comments come just ahead of the finance ministers and central bank governors gathering near Sendai in the north of the country. Those sessions end Saturday. Abe hosts the G-7 summit May 26-27.