Japan's household financial assets fall in 2007 for 1st time in 5 yrs+

TOKYO, Feb. 13 Kyodo -
Japan's household financial assets declined 4.0 percent in 2007 to 1,503.6
trillion yen, the first fall in five years, as the stock market dropped due to
the growing U.S. subprime mortgage problem that year, the Cabinet Office said
Friday.

Such assets are expected to have decreased further last year as the stock
market plunged amid the deepening global financial crisis triggered by the
subprime problem.
Japan's national wealth, or net assets, at the end of 2007 increased 2.3
percent during the year to 2,794.5 trillion yen for the second straight year of
growth as the current account surplus expanded, the office said in its 2007
national accounts.
Japanese national wealth peaked at 3,533.1 trillion yen amid the asset bubble
in 1990.
Japan's gross assets decreased 1.4 percent during 2007 to 8,427.7 trillion yen,
including 559 trillion yen in equity assets, down 22.9 percent, and 1,253.6
trillion yen in land assets, up 0.9 percent. The nation's debt decreased 3.2
percent to 5,633.3 trillion yen.
==Kyodo