Japan Open to Reducing Fuel Tax Burden, Trade Minister Says

Japan’s trade minister said he is willing to consider applying a trigger clause that would suspend taxation on gasoline if it rises above a certain level.

Koichi Hagiuda said he’s open to the idea of suspending the tax if the price exceeds 160 yen ($1.39) a liter for three months in a row. He was speaking on a Fuji TV program on Sunday.

Japan has given oil refiners subsidies in an effort to curb a rally in gasoline prices -- which are at the highest level in over a decade -- as it nurses a virus-hit economy. Hagiuda said Japan ...