Japanese government debt hits record high for 10th straight year

Japan's central government debt stood at 1,343.84 trillion yen (about $8.58 trillion) as of the end of March, hitting a record high for the 10th consecutive year, data from the Ministry of Finance showed Friday.

The debt level rose 20.13 trillion yen from the end of the previous fiscal year.

A breakdown shows that outstanding government bonds amounted to 1,207.22 trillion yen, up 24.33 trillion yen, while borrowings stood at 44.32 trillion yen and short-term financing bills totaled 92.3 trillion yen.

Kyodo News reported that Japan's government continues to rely heavily on debt to finance its operations as rising prices and higher interest rates drive up policy-based expenditure.

Meanwhile, under Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's so-called "responsible and proactive public finances," moves such as compiling supplementary budgets and issuing additional government bonds to address inflation have further added to the country's debt burden.

Tatsuaki Takano, a professor at Toyo University in Japan, said Japan's fiscal system is facing structural challenges as the ongoing trend of declining birthrate and aging population continues to erode fiscal space through ever-rising mandatory social security expenditures.