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Japan

54 Mid Autumn #24 of 217 · JPN · East Asia & Pacific · High income · Data: 6/7
What's Driving the Score
Base CCI (7 indicators weighted) 52.5
Hidden extraction (shadow economy, employer burden) +0.3
Development adj (spending below expected for income level) +1.2
Total CCI 54
Development Context
GDP per capita: $32,487
Actual spending: 20.9% GDP
Expected (Wagner): 32.6% GDP
Gap: 11.6% below expected
Indicator Breakdown
Each indicator is normalized to 0-100. Higher = more late-cycle pressure. The composite CCI is a weighted average plus adjustments.
Spending
20.9% GDP 21.9 2022
Debt
229.6% GDP 100.0 2024
Growth
1.1% 59.3 2024
Migration
1.24/1000 46.9 2024
Governance
1.57 18.6 2024
Fiscal Pressure
- - -
Demographic
Fert: 1.15 | Dep: 50.7% 89.8 2024
Spending (18% weight) - Total general government expenditure as % of GDP. Source: IMF WEO. Range: 10% (lean) to 60% (heavy state). Higher spending = further in the cycle.
Debt (14%) - Gross government debt as % of GDP. Source: IMF WEO. Range: 0-200%. Debt accumulation is how states finance extraction beyond revenue.
Growth (15%) - Average real GDP per capita growth over 5 years. Source: IMF WEO / World Bank. Inverted: low or negative growth signals extraction is suffocating the productive economy.
Migration (10%) - Net migration rate per 1000 population. Source: UN Population Division via World Bank. Inverted: people leaving is the most honest indicator - they vote with their feet.
Governance (18%) - Composite of control of corruption, government effectiveness, rule of law, and regulatory quality. Source: World Bank Worldwide Governance Indicators. Inverted: poor governance = extraction without accountability.
Fiscal Pressure (13%) - Interest payments as % of government revenue. Source: World Bank WDI. When interest consumes revenue, the state must tax more, borrow more, or print - the death spiral mechanism.
Demographic (12%) - Composite of fertility rate (below replacement = future worker shortage) and old-age dependency ratio (more retirees per worker = more fiscal pressure). Trajectory signal - affects the cycle in 20-30 years.
Hidden Extraction
Shadow Economy 8.2% GDP
Social Contributions -
Self-Employment 9.1%
Spending-Revenue Gap -
Total Hidden Adjustment +0.3 pts
Official spending data understates real extraction. These proxies estimate what's hidden:
Shadow Economy - % of GDP operating outside formal taxation. Source: IMF WP 18/17 (Medina-Schneider). Brazil at 35% means a third of the economy is escaping formal taxation - but citizens still pay through embedded costs.
Social Contributions - Employer payroll burden as % of government revenue. Hidden from workers' payslips. A 22% figure means significant extraction happens before workers see their salary.
Self-Employment - High rates signal people fleeing formal employment because the extraction burden makes it unprofitable. Informal/self-employed workers still pay consumption taxes.
Spending-Revenue Gap - Difference between what the state spends and what it collects as formal tax. The gap is funded by hidden channels: forced savings (e.g. FGTS in Brazil), state enterprises, parastatal organizations, or money printing.
CCI Trajectory (2000-2026) +24.7 pts over 26 years
Spring E.Sum M.Sum L.Sum E.Aut M.Aut L.Aut E.Win 0 20 40 60 80 100 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024 2026 29.3 36.5 27.3 32.5 45.6 54 data 7/7 0/7
Historical CCI computed from available indicators per year (spending, growth, governance, fiscal pressure, demographics). Not all 7 indicators are available for every year - early data points use fewer indicators. The trend direction matters more than absolute values.
Nearest Countries by CCI Score
# Country CCI Season Delta Data
23 France 54.1 Mid Autumn +0.1 7/7
25 Mexico 53.6 Mid Autumn -0.4 7/7
26 Lebanon 53.5 Mid Autumn -0.5 6/7
27 Bahrain 53.5 Mid Autumn -0.5 7/7
21 West Bank and Gaza 54.6 Mid Autumn +0.6 5/7