Japan: Japan's parliament has approved a record JPY 122.31 trillion ($767 billion) budget for the fiscal year ending in March. This marks the first time in 11 years that the annual spending plan was not enacted before the April 1 start of the fiscal year.

According to Qatar News Agency, the budget highlights Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's strategy to increase public spending to stimulate economic growth. However, it does not include specific measures to address rising energy costs or the potential impacts of geopolitical tensions involving Iran, leading to opposition demands for a supplementary budget.

Despite not having a majority in the House of Councillors, the ruling coalition led by the Liberal Democratic Party secured support from some opposition lawmakers, enabling the budget to pass. The House of Representatives, which holds the final say, had approved the budget on March 13.

The budget sets a new record for the second consecutive year, mainly due to increased social welfare costs associated with Japan's aging population and a record JPY 9.04 trillion allocation for defense. Despite higher revenues, the government plans to issue JPY 29.58 trillion in new bonds to cover the deficit, underscoring Japan's ongoing dependency on borrowing and its challenging fiscal position among G7 nations.

Deliberations over the budget were delayed approximately a month following Prime Minister Takaichi's decision to call a snap election in January. While the ruling party quickly pushed the budget through the lower house post-election victory, resistance in the upper chamber delayed the final approval.

On March 30, lawmakers approved a temporary JPY 8.56 trillion budget to fund government operations for 11 days starting April 1. This marked Japan's first interim budget since 2015 during Shinzo Abe's leadership. The interim budget, which included essential spending like social welfare and new policies such as expanded tuition subsidies for private high schools, will be integrated into the full-year budget.

Japan's constitution allows for the budget to be enacted automatically if the upper house fails to act within 30 days of its passage by the lower chamber, or by April 11. Nevertheless, the government sought formal approval through a legislative vote.