do they need to flog off the coi-collection?
Japan's Tanigaki Says Interest Rates May Hamper Debt Cutting
Rising interest rates may thwart Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's pledge to curb Japan's 729.23 trillion yen ($6.59 trillion) in public debt
Japan's state debts balloon to record 729 tril. yen
The balance of Japan's national debt hit a record 729.23 trillion yen as of June 30, up 26.08 trillion yen over March 31, the Finance Ministry said Friday.
The balance is 17.5 times the projected tax revenue of 41.75 trillion yen for fiscal 2004 through next March, the ministry said.
If the debt balance is divided by the number of Japanese citizens, the average public burden would come to 5.71 million yen per person, ministry officials said.
The balance has swelled as the government has been floating large amounts of bonds to make up for national revenue shortfalls.
Breaking down the national debt balance, government bonds accounted for 571.42 trillion yen, up 15.01 trillion yen, with financial bills making up 99.89 trillion yen, up 13.76 trillion yen.
The balance of financial bills -- a type of debt instrument with maturities of some 60 days -- rose because the ministry had to cover a shortfall in its war chest for currency market interventions by floating the bills, the officials said.
State debts balloon to record Y729 tril
