TOKYO -- Japan could distribute 50,000 yen ($350) in cash handouts to low-income households as early as fall under a new relief package for those hurt the most by surging food and energy prices.
With pricier resources and a weakening yen accelerating inflation in Japan, the government is weighing a round of fresh assistance to ease the public's mounting pain. The cash assistance would apply to households earning too little to pay local income taxes. Significantly more than 10 million are expected to qualify for the payments, which would be funded by the government's budget reserves for fiscal 2022.
