TOKYO, May 26 — Japan fell to third place in the global ranking of net creditors in 2025, despite its net external assets hitting a record high, the Ministry of Finance said Tuesday.
The country’s net external assets, or the value of overseas assets held by the Japanese government, businesses, and individuals minus their external debts, including foreign investments in Japan, reached 561.75 trillion yen (around 3.5 trillion U.S. dollars) as of the end of 2025, up 4.4 percent from a year earlier.
The figure marked a seventh straight record high, underpinned by increased overseas investment from Japanese companies and rising equity valuations.
A breakdown shows that gross external assets rose 8.5 percent to 1,805.63 trillion yen, while external liabilities climbed 10.5 percent to 1,243.88 trillion yen, the ministry said.
Japan lost its status as the world’s top creditor at the end of 2024, overtaken by Germany for the first time in 34 years. (Namibia Daily News/Xinhua)
