Source: Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, "Labour Force Survey (Basic Tabulation and Detailed Tabulation)." 7  I will now shift to business fixed investment. As shown in Chart 8, the amount outstanding of business fixed investment has recently turned to a decline, albeit marginally, after continuing on an increasing trend. This could be due to two underlying factors.
First is the reactionary decline in demand after the tax hike. Second is the rapid shift in perception of both manufacturing and nonmanufacturing firms with regard to their production capacity as being excessive, mainly due to the decrease in consumption triggered by the spread of COVID-19.