Japan to set up $73bn stimulus package soon

Japan is drawing up an economic stimulus package worth eight trillion yen ($73 billion) to help businesses and consumers cope with soaring fuel and commodity prices, news reports said yesterday.

News of the package came on the heels of a government announcement this month the world's second-largest economy shrank for the first time in a year in Q2 due to faltering exports and sluggish consumer demand.

The package will include measures to help agricultural and fishing businesses hit hard by soaring fuel costs, the Kyodo News agency and the Yomiuri newspaper reported, citing unnamed government sources. More than 3,000 Japanese fishermen held a one-day strike in July to demand the government act to protect their businesses from skyrocketing oil prices. The package will also aim to slash road tolls.