Tokyo, Feb 10, 2026 —
Japan’s Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama said on Tuesday that the government may consider using surplus generated from the country’s $1.4 trillion foreign exchange reserves as a possible funding source for planned cuts to the food sales tax.
Speaking at a press conference, Katayama said that surplus from foreign currency reserves had been transferred to Japan’s general account in the past, suggesting it could again be discussed as an option when weighing how to offset revenue losses from the proposed tax reduction.
However, she declined to comment on whether the government would relax existing budget rules that require at least 30% of the annual surplus to be retained in the reserve account. Easing that rule would allow a larger portion of the surplus to be shifted to the general account to help cover expected funding gaps.
The remarks come as Japan considers ways to finance tax relief measures while maintaining fiscal discipline