The Cabinet on Friday approved a 52.89 trillion yen fiscal investment and loan program, known as "zaito," for fiscal 1999, 5.9 percent more than that for the current year.
The increased zaito reflects the government's resolve to utilize the program to remedy the nation's economic problems quickly, Finance Ministry officials said.
The zaito program has two faces -- general outlays and investment funds for financial markets. The general outlays go to government-affiliated corporations and local governments, which will use the money to offer loans and make investments, while the investment funds portion uses postal deposits and public insurance funds.