Rising social security costs will force the government to issue bonds worth 41.1 percent of its total revenue in fiscal 2004, up from 38.5 percent in fiscal 2000, the Finance Ministry says in a simulation report released Wednesday.
The size of the general-account budget for fiscal 2004, the 12 months from April 2004 to March 2005, will reach 93.2 trillion yen, up 9.6 percent from that of fiscal 2000, according to the ministry's medium-term fiscal outlook.
The projection is based on an assumption that the economy will grow at a real 2 percent in fiscal 2002, 2003 and 2004. For fiscal 2001, the government plans 1.7 percent growth.
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