Japan to double budget reserves for FY24/25 to respond to earthquake reconstruction - Asahi

TOKYO (Reuters) - Japan's government is considering doubling budget reserves to 1 trillion yen ($6.9 billion) for the new fiscal year starting April to cover the cost of earthquake reconstruction, the Asahi newspaper reported late on Tuesday citing several government sources.

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's cabinet is expected to approve the plan as early as Jan. 16, the report said.

The cabinet earlier on Tuesday approved 4.74 billion yen in spending from fiscal 2023/24 reserves for such aid as water, food, diapers and heaters, Minister of Finance Shunichi Suzuki said.

The magnitude 7.6 earthquake that hit the Noto peninsula on Japan's west coast on New Year's Day killed more than 200 people, making it the deadliest since the 2016 quake in Kumamoto on the southern island of Kyushu.

($1 = 144.4200 yen)

(Reporting by Kaori Kaneko; Editing by Sonali Paul)