The government is considering setting a new fiscal target after conceding that the goal established by former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi won't be met, Finance Minister Kaoru Yosano said Friday.

"We may need another milestone," Yosano told reporters in Tokyo. Asked if the government would consider targeting the nation's ratio of debt to gross domestic product as a new goal, he said, "We'll study our options."

Prime Minister Taro Aso's record ¥15.4 trillion stimulus package has made the pledge to restore fiscal health even more unrealistic for policymakers, who were already struggling to contain debt as the recession reduced revenue. Japan's debt burden, already the world's largest, will probably spiral to 197 percent of GDP next year, according to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

"The primary balance goal looks to me like it's blown out of the water now," said Naomi Fink, Japan strategist at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ Ltd. "Even before this budget, it was supposed to be a broken goal."

Japan may sell an additional ¥17 trillion in bonds this fiscal year to help pay for the stimulus and other projects, two Finance Ministry officials told Bloomberg News this week, on top of the planned ¥113.3 trillion of debt to be sold this year.

Bond yields have been climbing on speculation the government will keep increasing the debt supply to prop up the economy. Benchmark 10-year bond yields rose 2 basis points to 1.45 percent Thursday, approaching a five-month high of 1.49 percent reached on April 10.

Yosano said the government hasn't formally abandoned the primary balance goal because it serves as a reminder of the need to keep fiscal discipline. A primary surplus is achieved when revenue exceeds spending, excluding bond sales and interest payments.