The government may sell as much as ¥17 trillion in additional bonds this fiscal year to help pay for Prime Minister Taro Aso's third stimulus package and other projects, Finance Ministry officials said.
The government may issue between ¥16 trillion and ¥17 trillion in bonds on top of the planned ¥113.3 trillion in debt to be sold to investors in the year that started April 1, according to two officials who declined to be identified.
The extra sale will include borrowing for the stimulus package, as well as about ¥6 trillion of so-called "zaito" bonds to fund loans for state-owned financial institutions, they said.