Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

Latest News

Japan’s word of the year speaks to rising cost of living fears

Famously one of life’s only two certainties, “tax” has been chosen by the Japanese public as its word of the year, reflecting rising costs of living and much-discussed tax reforms in the world’s third-largest economy.

The kanji, or character, for tax topped an annual poll of more than 147,000 respondents by the Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation, with the head priest of a Kyoto temple painting a giant calligraphy of the character at an unveiling ceremony on Tuesday.

The character was chosen because debates on tax hikes were held throughout the year, association officials said, according to public broadcaster NHK.

Much debate has taken place in the country on income tax cuts, a new invoice system and on tougher rules for a tax donation scheme, they added.

“Next year, there will also be whispers of a consumption tax hike, tobacco tax, corporate tax review and so on. There will be no shortage of topics related to taxation, so I picked this kanji,” said one survey respondent from Osaka.

It comes as inflation has reached as high as 4.3% in Japan over the past year, worsened by stagnant wages that have long plagued the East Asian nation. The inflation figures, which may appear modest to many countries, are seen as unusually high in Japan.

The Bank of Japan’s decision to keep interest rates low, which has driven the Japanese yen down, also caused costs of imports to surge, even though it was seen as an effective way to bring back tourists after the Covid pandemic.

“Prices are rising but wages are not keeping up,” said another survey respondent from Tokyo, explaining their pick.

Tax also topped the vote in 2014, when Japan raised consumption taxes.

This year, the runner-up was the kanji for “heat” – Japan was hit by a record heat wave this summer – while in third place was “war,” a perennial global headline maker.

This post appeared first on cnn.com






    You May Also Like

    Investing

    Overview The world of business technology has evolved. Driven by the shift towards distributed work and cloud application delivery, enterprise infrastructure is undergoing a...

    Investing

    Overview Hempalta Corp. (TSXV:HEMP) is engaged in processing industrial hemp at scale to produce a range of consumer and commercial products. Its proprietary processing...

    Investing

    Overview ALX Resources (TSXV:AL,FWB:6LLN,OTC:ALXEF) is dedicated to providing shareholders with multiple opportunities for discovery by exploring a portfolio of prospective mineral properties, which include...

    Investing

    Overview Flynn Gold Limited (ASX: FG1) is an Australian mineral exploration company with a portfolio of projects in Tasmania and Western Australia. Tasmania is...

    Disclaimer: gorgeousincome.com, its managers, its employees, and assigns (collectively “The Company”) do not make any guarantee or warranty about what is advertised above. Information provided by this website is for research purposes only and should not be considered as personalized financial advice. The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendation. Any investments recommended here should be taken into consideration only after consulting with your investment advisor and after reviewing the prospectus or financial statements of the company.


    Copyright © 2024 gorgeousincome.com