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The purpose of this paper is to investigate the fiscal sustainability of Japan by applying a dynamic stochastic general equilibrium model to the Japanese economy. By introducing intermediation costs into the model, we succeed in explaining the observed relationship between the interest and GDP growth rates, which is crucial in testing for sustainability. When the projected real growth rate is 2.5%, the average real interest rate becomes 2.57%, and the debt-to‐GDP ratio gradually increases stochastically so that government debt is not sustainable. To recover sustainability, the primary surplus must be 0.2% of GDP.H68 , G12 , E62 ,

In this paper we investigate the effect of a tax on land rent on the growth rate of capital in a growing economy with overlapping generations. A tax on land rent has a potential to increase the growth rate of capital. If the model is extended to allow the tax revenue to be refunded to individuals, a tax on land rent may deter growth to the extent that the tax revenue is transferred to the older generation. JEL Classi®cation numbers: H31, O41.

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This paper uncovers a novel mechanism by which bubbles crowd in capital investment. If capital is initially depressed by a binding credit constraint, injecting a bubble triggers a savings glut. Higher returns in a new bubbly equilibrium attract additional investors who expand investment at the extensive margin. We demonstrate that crowding-in through this channel is a robust phenomenon that occurs along the entire time path after bubbles are injected.

This paper provides a fiscal crisis model that explains the low interest rates of Japanese government bonds. The key ingredient is the absence of safe assets in the sense that investors have no access to any asset that hedges fiscal risk. The interest rate is insensitive to any change in fiscal conditions and does not fully reflect the risk premium. This finding explains the low interest rates of Japanese government bonds even though the risk of fiscal default looks fairly high. The poorly-functioning bond market created in this way contributes to the low interest rate followed by a low default probability, and allows the government to sustain its large debt. This finding explains the mechanism under which the low interest rate coexists with Japan's large outstanding debt. Welfare implications are mixed. The well-functioning bond market does not always contribute to welfare enhancement because the market makes it difficult to sustain the debt. We show the implications for fiscal sustainability of some policies, such as financial market reforms and growth enhancement policies.

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