TOKYO, Oct. 15 (Xinhua) -- Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe confirmed Monday the government will raise the consumption tax to 10 percent from the current 8 percent, telling his cabinet ministers to take the necessary steps to mitigate the impact.
The new tax hike will come into effect on Oct. 1, 2019, the Japanese leader said at an extraordinary cabinet meeting.
According to a summary of the talks released by the government, Abe said he will make "all-out efforts and take all measures to prevent the tax hike from having a negative impact on the economy."
As Japan's population continues to both age and shrink, a phenomena being referred to as a "ticking time bomb" by some economists and anthropologists, the 2-percentage point tax hike is believed to be the only way to cover the rising costs related to social welfare.
Some economists have voiced concern that the tax hike may see private demand diminish and hamper growth of the world's third largest economy, as was the case with the previous tax hike.
They have highlighted the fact that Japan's economy plunged into recession when the government raised the tax to 8 percent from 5 percent in 2014.
