The country of Japan has been facing a recession due to many occurring circumstances that have caused Japan's economy to slowly spiral down, such as many other countries are facing today. On December 8, 2009; Japan's government reached an agreement regarding the financial crisis that the country is facing and has chosen to put a stimulus package into action. The stimulus package that Japan has put together will have a budget of 7.2 trillion yen (82 billion dollars) to help stimulate the country's decreased employment rate, give incentives for energy efficient products, and help give loans to business owners [1].
Though Japan's recent recession can not be tied to one single event, analysts believe that one of the leading causes is linked to a 14-year high for the yen compared to the U.S. dollar [2]
The effect that Japan's recession has had on its country has greatly changed their market values on almost all goods as well as their real estate market. However, Japan is not the only country feeling the effect of their recession; some countries such as the United States of America and Britain have lost a large amount of exports being sold to Japan, as well as many imports. Also, many Japanese stocks sold in foreign markets have plummeted due to fear of a total lost to those who have invested in Japan's stock market.
In addition to the money being organized for Japan's stimulus package, the Japanese government is setting up a system of guidelines to help ensure that the money is being used effectively [3]. The Japanese government has spoken on how they are planning to help those who are being effected by the recession by offering a number of different steps to bring the economy back to normal national standards, these steps include:
- Low-interest mortgage rates
- Decrease requirements for businesses applying for subsidies
- Extend subsidies for energy-efficient cars by six months
- Extend incentives for energy-efficient appliances
- Expand government backed protection for companies that require government funding
- Incentives for newly built houses and houses that are renovated with energy-efficient appliances