Olivia Hiriak
Staff Writer
For the first time in five years, Japan has fallen into a recession. It’s already weakened economy has been impacted by the effects of the coronavirus on companies both domestic and abroad.
The world’s third economy shrank 3.4 percent annually after the United States and China in the first three months of the year. It is the largest economy officially entering a recession, often defined as two consecutive quarters of negative growth. Other major economies around the world are expected to follow the stream of outbreaks around the world. The companies had already stalled before the outbreak of the coronavirus. Consumer spending declined after the Japanese government raised a tax on consumption from eight to 10 percent in October. According to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government, this would help reduce public debt--the highest among industrialized nations--and the growing demand for social services to finance the country’s older workers.
The efforts in the health sector seem to have paid off. COVID-19 cases rose shortly before the withdrawal. The total number of deaths due to the outbreak was under 750 on Sunday, which is lower than other large industrialized nations. However, each of these decisions had a keen economic impact.
