日本首相高市早苗：不排除发债支持食品消费税减免，8%食品税率拟自明年4月起下调两年
日本东京——日本首相高市早苗10月19日在国会表示，她不排除发行国债，为定于明年4月起实施、为期两年的消费税减免提供资金。政府已提出方案，把食品类商品现行8%的消费税率下调，以缓解生活成本上涨对家庭的冲击。
据路透社报道，高市对议员表示，政府将通过检视收支两方面，努力稳定地降低政府债务余额与国内生产总值（GDP）之比；「在此过程中，我们会适当控制每年的发债规模，」她说，「我们不会完全排除发债的可能性。」她还表示，日本可以通过强化经济的措施来提升市场对日元的信任。
消费税是日本财政的重要税源，食品减税涉及可观的收入缺口，如何筹资一直是国会攻防焦点。高市内阁主张以发债等方式桥接减税成本，反对党与部分市场人士则担忧日本本已庞大的公共债务进一步膨胀、推高长期利率并压低日元。
此前在10月9日，高市曾在国会表示，日本经济已不再处于通缩状态，政府将密切关注汇率与物价动向并作出适当应对；她同时称政府充分尊重日本银行在货币政策上的独立性，暗示不会阻拦央行进一步加息。食品消费税减免法案的国会审议与最终筹资安排，将是日本今冬政局与市场的观察重点。
Japan PM Takaichi Won't Rule Out Bond Issuance to Fund Food Tax Cut: 8% Levy on Food to Fall for Two Years from April
TOKYO, Japan — Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi told parliament on October 19 that she would not rule out issuing bonds to fund a two-year cut to the country's consumption tax scheduled from April next year, Reuters reported.
The government has laid out a plan to cut the 8 percent levy on food items from April next year as part of efforts to cushion households from rising living costs. "The government will seek to stably lower the ratio of debt balance to gross domestic product by reviewing both spending and expenditure," Takaichi said. "As we do this, we will appropriately control the size of annual bond issuance. We would not rule out the chance of issuing bonds altogether." She also said Japan can heighten market trust in the yen by pursuing steps to strengthen the economy.
The consumption tax is a major revenue source for Japan, and a food tax cut leaves a sizable funding gap that has been a central point of contention in parliament. The Takaichi cabinet favors bridging the cost, including through bond issuance, while opposition parties and some market participants worry about further swelling Japan's already large public debt, pushing up long-term interest rates and pressuring the yen.
Earlier, on October 9, Takaichi told parliament the government would continue to scrutinize exchange-rate and price developments carefully and respond appropriately, noted that Japan's economy was no longer experiencing deflation, and said the administration fully respects the Bank of Japan's independence in setting monetary policy. The fate of the food tax legislation and its final financing remain a focus for Japanese politics and markets this winter.
来源：GSM·美国（原文链接）
图片来源：图：位于东京的日本国会议事堂。Daderot 摄，CC0，经 Wikimedia Commons 发布。/ The National Diet Building in Tokyo, Japan. Photo by Daderot, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons.
