Japan’s government is to outline new steps to stimulate the economy this month, the Asahi newspaper reported yesterday, without saying where it obtained the information.
The draft plan is to include support for low-income pensioners, steps to lower the cost to buy energy-efficient homes and an increase in the minimum wage, according to the Asahi report.
The plan comes after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in September laid out three new economic themes — a strong economy, child-care support and social security. It also comes as a majority of executives at 100 of Japan’s biggest companies said the nation’s economy is treading water.
Under a survey by the Asahi newspaper this month, the number of companies that said the economy is now at a standstill rose from four in June to 58, the highest it has been since Abe came to power in December 2012.
The number of companies that said the economy is expanding moderately declined from 92 to 41 in the previous survey. Consumer spending was cited as the biggest concern by executives, according to the newspaper.
Fifty-two companies said they see signs of the economy improving before the end of the current fiscal year in March, according to the survey that was carried out between Nov. 2 and Nov. 13, and in principle conducted through meetings with top managers.
Separately, Japan plans to bolster state-backed insurance coverage for companies that invest in overseas infrastructure projects and trade, according to the Nikkei newspaper.
The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry plans to change regulations in the current fiscal year to allow the Nippon Export and Investment Insurance (NEXI) to offer insurance contracts of up to 30 years compared with the current 15 years, according to the Nikkei. NEXI would also allow for insurance contracts that pay in US dollars, the report said.
Details of the plan were included in an announcement made on Saturday by Abe during a visit to Malaysia, the newspaper said.
Taiwan Transport and Storage Corp (TTS, 台灣通運倉儲) yesterday unveiled its first electric tractor unit — manufactured by Volvo Trucks — in a ceremony in Taipei, and said the unit would soon be used to transport cement produced by Taiwan Cement Corp (TCC, 台灣水泥). Both TTS and TCC belong to TCC International Holdings Ltd (台泥國際集團). With the electric tractor unit, the Taipei-based cement firm would become the first in Taiwan to use electric vehicles to transport construction materials. TTS chairman Koo Kung-yi (辜公怡), Volvo Trucks vice president of sales and marketing Johan Selven, TCC president Roman Cheng (程耀輝) and Taikoo Motors Group
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