Fitch cuts Japan's credit rating by one notch over debt fears

Tokyo

FITCH cut its credit rating on heavily indebted Japan by one notch on Monday, saying it has not done enough to plug a budget gap left by its decision to delay a sales tax rise.

The move saw Japan's rating trimmed to "A" from "A+", several months after rival credit agency Moody's also downgraded Japan's credit rating.

Moody's cited "rising uncertainty" over the national debt and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's faltering efforts to kick-start the world's No 3 economy.

Tokyo raised its sales levy in April 2014 - to 8.0 per cent from 5.0 per cent - for the first time in 17 years, in a bid to generate more revenue to pay down…