Japan household assets hit record on more savings, stock rises

Assets held by Japanese households rose 7.1 percent from a year earlier to a record 1,946 trillion yen ($17 trillion) at the end of March as consumers reduced spending amid the pandemic and stock prices recovered, the Bank of Japan said Friday. Cash and deposits expanded to 1,056 trillion yen, up 5.5 percent, or 54.3 of total household assets, marking the largest on a fiscal year-end basis, according to the BOJ. The negative impact of the pandemic lingered as people continued to refrain from going out, reducing spending. The rise in cash and deposits was also helped in part by the government's...