Editing Economy of Japan (section)

=== Post-recession (2021–present) ===
At the end of March 2022, the [[Ministry of Finance (Japan)|Ministry of Finance]] announced that the national debt reached precisely 1.017 million billion yen.<ref name="medium">{{cite web |author=Sylvain Saurel |date=13 May 2022 |title=Japan Exceeds One Million Billion Yen in Debt — "Whatever It Takes" Has Become the Norm. |url= https://ssaurel.medium.com/japan-exceeds-one-million-billion-yen-in-debt-whatever-it-takes-has-become-the-norm-9adc5f501327 |archive-url= https://archive.today/20220513205120/https://ssaurel.medium.com/japan-exceeds-one-million-billion-yen-in-debt-whatever-it-takes-has-become-the-norm-9adc5f501327 |archive-date=13 May 2022 |work=Medium.com}}</ref> The total public debt of the country, which includes debts contracted by local governments, represents 1.210 million billion yen (9,200 billion dollars) which is nearly 250% of Japan's GDP.<ref name="medium" /> Economist Kohei Iwahara said such an exceptional debt to GDP level is only possible because Japanese hold most of the debt: "“Japanese households hold most of their savings in bank accounts (48%) and these sums are used by commercial banks to buy Japanese government bonds. Thus, 85.7% of these bonds are held by Japanese investors.”<ref name="medium" />

The [[Bank of Japan]]'s main policy aim since the Lost Decades started had been to end [[deflation]] and eventually achieve 2% [[inflation]].<ref name="japandebt" /> The increased international economic tension brought about by events such as the [[Russian invasion of Ukraine|Russian Invasion of Ukraine]] in 2022 finally helped the country achieve the much-anticipated inflation target of 2%, and the [[Negative interest rate|negative interest policy]] since 2016 was ended in March 2024.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /> However, while other major economies focus on suppressing inflation by raising interest rates, Japan aims to firmly establish inflation by maintaining low rates. As a side effect, the [[Japanese yen]] has become extremely weak, hitting a 37.5-year low of 161 yen/USD in July 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |date=30 April 2024 |title=The Yen Appreciates Greatly, Rising from 160 Yen/USD to 154 Yen/USD |url= https://www.nikkei.com/article/DGKKZO80360730Q4A430C2MM8000/ |access-date=2 June 2024 |work=[[The Nikkei]] |language=ja}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=日本放送協会 |date=3 July 2024 |title=円相場 一時1ドル161円90銭台に 約37年半ぶりの円安水準更新 {{!}} NHK |url= https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20240703/k10014500461000.html |access-date=11 July 2024 |work=NHKニュース}}</ref> Furthermore, the [[Effective exchange rate|real effective exchange rate]] in May 2024, when the 2020 average is set at 100, is 68.65, the lowest level since the start of the Bank of Japan statistics in January 1970, due to a combination of low inflation in Japan and a relatively low trade share.<ref>{{Cite news |script-title=ja:円の実力、なぜ過去最低水準 金利差だけではない日本経済の「弱さ」：朝日新聞デジタル |trans-title=Why is the yen's strength at its lowest level ever? The weakness of the Japanese economy is not just due to the interest rate differential |work=Asahi Shimbun Digital |publisher=[[The Asahi Shimbun]] |url= https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASRDQ413ZRCQULFA014.html |date=25 December 2023 |access-date=13 April 2024 |language=ja |archive-date=30 January 2024 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20240130100406/https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASRDQ413ZRCQULFA014.html |url-status=live |url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=26 April 2024 |title=（時時刻刻）口先介入、薄れた効果 １カ月４円下落「市場に見透かされ」：朝日新聞デジタル |trans-title=(Time and Time) Lip service, faded effect, 4 yen drop in one month 'The market saw through' |work=Asahi Shimbun Digital |url= https://www.asahi.com/articles/DA3S15921049.html?iref=ogimage_rek |access-date=28 April 2024 |language=ja}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=9 May 2024 |title=このままでは日本の伝統的企業が海外に買われていく…円安が止まらない日本を待ち受ける"最悪のシナリオ" 政府は円安政策を意図的に進めているように見える |trans-title=If things continue like this, traditional Japanese companies will be bought out by foreign companies...The 'worst case scenario' awaits Japan as the yen continues to depreciate.The government appears to be intentionally pursuing a policy of depreciating the yen. |url= https://president.jp/articles/-/81436 |access-date=13 May 2024 |work=PRESIDENT Online（プレジデントオンライン） |language=ja}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=円の国際価値が過去最低、BIS ドルなどと大差、通貨地位揺らぐ |url= https://www.47news.jp/11086746.html |access-date=21 June 2024 |work=47NEWS |publisher=[[Kyodo News]] |language=ja}}</ref> This devaluation of the currency caused Japan to lose its status as the [[List of countries by GDP (nominal)|world’s third largest economy]] to [[Economy of Germany|Germany]] in nominal terms, which was approximately half the size of the country's economy a decade earlier.<ref name="Japan slips">{{cite news |last1=Montgomery |first1=Hanako |last2=He |first2=Laura |date=15 February 2024 |title=Japan slips into recession, allowing Germany to overtake as world's third-largest economy |url= https://edition.cnn.com/2024/02/14/economy/japan-economy-recession-hnk-intl/index.html |work=CNN }}</ref><ref name="McCurry">{{cite news |last1=McCurry |first1=Justin |date=15 February 2024 |title=Japan loses crown as world's third-largest economy after it slips into recession |url= https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/feb/15/japan-recession-economy-falls-behind-germany-worlds-largest |work=The Guardian}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=GDP - Gross Domestic Product 2012 {{!}} countryeconomy.com |url= https://countryeconomy.com/gdp?year=2012 |access-date=2 June 2024 |work=countryeconomy.com }}</ref>

Factors such as an apparent end to the 30-year struggle against deflation, improvements in corporate governance, and high corporate profits boosted the stock market. Consequently, both the [[Nikkei 225]] and [[TOPIX]] indices surpassed the record highs they reached more than 30 years ago in 2024. The market capitalisation of the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s prime section exceeded a quadrillion yen for the first time in July 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |date=4 July 2024 |title=Nikkei 225 reaches all-time-high, TSE's market cap reaches 1000 trillion yen |url= https://www.nikkei.com/article/DGXZQOUB010XY0R00C24A7000000/ |access-date=10 July 2024 |work=日本経済新聞 |language=ja}}</ref>