Can Japanese retiree sending make up for lost exports?

I'm reading Paul Krugman's book "The Return of Depression Economics" (which has been updated to include discussion of the current crisis). Krugman devotes a chapter to Japan and points out that strong exports ultimately pulled them out of their financial turmoil.

Now, just a few years later, Japan is scrambling with lost productivity due to the huge drop in exports. This week, Prime Minister Aso announced an unprecedented budget of $980 billion to inject money into the economy. The investment in social security and pensions seems directed at Japan's large population of retirees. The question is if the infusion of cash will be enough to ease the concerns of a particularly frugal segment of the population.



http://english.aljazeera.net/business/2008/12/2008122611729888367.html