As the results could be affected by such factors as how the surveys were conducted and the nuance of the questions, some leeway should be allowed. Nonetheless, financial literacy in Japan still has much room for improvement, particularly in comparison with other countries and economies.
Looking at the results in more detail to find why Japan ranks so low, the percentage of correct answers was notably low for questions on three subjects: inflation, compound interest, and diversified investment. I will explain each of these specifically. First, as for inflation, the true/false question was on the statement, "High inflation means that the overall cost of living is increasing rapidly."