A quarter of Japan’s population is more than 65 years old – three times the world average. Tax revenues have been falling since 1990. Meanwhile, total government expenditures, according to the Ministry of Finance, have leapt by $300bn or so since the financial crisis, helping gross private and public sector debt to an equivalent of five times gross domestic product. Surely, a recipe for rising bond yields and a bombed-out yen, right?
日本人口中,有四分之一超過65歲,這個(gè)比例是世界平均水平的三倍。稅收收入自1990年以來一直在下降。與此同時(shí),日本財(cái)務(wù)省的數(shù)據(jù)顯示,自金融危機(jī)以來,政府支出總額激增了3000億美元左右,推動私人和公共部門債務(wù)總額上升至相當(dāng)于國內(nèi)生產(chǎn)總值的5倍。毫無疑問,這將導(dǎo)致債券收益率上升、日元遭受重挫,不是么?