Japan's national flag flutters in front of a construction site of a commercial building in Tokyo, Japan, February 17, 2022. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon/FilesJapan's national flag flutters in front of a construction site of a commercial building in Tokyo, Japan, February 17, 2022. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon/Files
“Given rising inflation, there’s a chance Japan may experience stagflation,” Fukuda told a media briefing. Soaring crude oil and food prices are having a broad impact on households, small firms and farmers, Yamaguchi said, calling for subsidies and a freeze of add-on tax charged for gasoline.“Depending on how things unfold, we could see the worst crisis in post-war history,” he said after the meeting.
The resource-poor country is particularly vulnerable to rising import costs for fuel and food, which have hit households suffering from slow wage growth.