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July 16, 2024
 

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Masaki Kondo
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo. Many analysts say the central bank would want to avoid rushing policy moves as policymakers probably don’t want to be seen as being forced to act to boost the currency.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 12, 2024
Yen jump eases pressure on BOJ to tighten its policy, analysts say
If the Bank of Japan raised interest rates and announced fewer bond purchases, it could risk being seen as only driven by the volatile yen.
The Government Pension Investment Fund's holdings of government bonds increased 25% to ¥50.3 trillion in fiscal year ended in March.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 11, 2024
Japan’s public pension fund steps up as BOJ mulls bond cuts
The BOJ is expected to release a plan to substantially reduce its debt buying at the next policy decision later this month.
Traditional boat parties on the Sumida River in Tokyo are popular for informal gatherings among professionals that deal in Japanese government bonds.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 9, 2024
Tokyo’s exclusive circle of government bond traders in demand amid policy shift
The world’s top hedge funds are shaking up the closed community that was, for a time, a sleepy backwater of global finance.
The supply of super-long Japanese debt is projected to total almost ¥30 trillion in the fiscal year that started on April 1.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jul 2, 2024
Big risks hound Japan’s longest bonds despite move to cut supply
Japan's government appears to be striving to calm down a market that’s wracked by rising yields.
The yen fell as much as 0.4% to ¥160.39 per dollar on Wednesday, extending losses this year to around 12%.
BUSINESS
Jun 26, 2024
Yen’s tumble to weakest since 1986 boosts risk of intervention
The Japanese currency fell as much as 0.4% to ¥160.39 per dollar on Wednesday, extending losses this year to around 12%.
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
BUSINESS / Markets
Jun 10, 2024
Investors brace for volatility as BOJ seeks to cut bond buying
The Bank of Japan bought only ¥4.5 trillion of government bonds last month, the lowest amount since March 2013.
The rate of the yen against the U.S. dollar is displayed in the trading room at foreign exchange brokerage Gaitame.com in Tokyo on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Apr 25, 2024
Yen inches closer to intervention point as BOJ meeting starts
For the first time in over 30 years, the yen weakened beyond ¥155 per dollar, sending traders on the alert for possible intervention.
The possibility of a deepening conflict between Israel and Iran suggests higher energy prices for energy import-dependent Japan, meaning more downward pressure for the yen.
BUSINESS / Markets
Apr 19, 2024
Oil poses more risks for yen as Japan depends on energy imports
Crude oil futures jumped on Friday following reports that Israel launched a missile strike on Iran.
The Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance headquarters in Tokyo. Japan's life insurers will lay out their investment plans for the new fiscal year starting this month.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 15, 2024
Investment plans for Japan’s insurers will likely favor JGBs
Companies will lay out their plans for the fiscal year starting this month.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda has indicated the central bank's debt buying will be dialed back at some point.
BUSINESS
Apr 9, 2024
Japan’s bond market liquidity improves as BOJ loosens its grip
Among the signs of progress, the average bid-ask spread to trade the country’s debt has tightened to the narrowest in at least six months.
The yen remains around the three-decade low in the ¥151 range against the dollar even after the Bank of Japan's interest rate hike.
BUSINESS / Markets
Apr 4, 2024
Why even the BOJ's historic rate hike has failed to revive the yen
Japan’s first interest rate hike in 17 years has failed to deliver the boost to the yen that policymakers had hoped for.
Signs of a decline in hedging demand suggest that local investors are less concerned the yen will rebound sharply.
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 26, 2024
Lower hedging costs reveal Japan investors' confidence in weak yen bets
Three-month yen basis swaps, which indicate decreasing demand for hedging the more they rise, closed last week at their highest level since January 2022.
Call loan brokers at Tokyo Tanshi in Tokyo in November. After decades of setting its benchmark rate near zero, the Bank of Japan is poised to tighten, spurring new opportunities for veteran traders after decades of setting its benchmark rate near zero.
BUSINESS / Markets
Mar 17, 2024
Japan’s $4 trillion offshore funds will ignore first BOJ hike
Only 40% of 273 respondents said the BOJ's first interest-rate hike since 2007 will prompt investors to sell foreign assets and repatriate the proceeds.
The National Stock Exchange of India building in Mumbai, India. Japanese investors are increasingly shifting their focus to the Indian stock market on bets that the South Asian nation will be the next China.
BUSINESS / Markets
Feb 2, 2024
Japanese retail investors pile billions into Indian equities
In contrast, flows into Chinese shares have dropped the most among 14 emerging markets covered by Japan’s data on international investment positions.
The yen extended gains Tuesday after the Bank of Japan indicated it will reduce monthly buying of superlong government bonds.
BUSINESS / Markets
Jan 9, 2024
Yen rises after BOJ indicates cut in superlong bond buying
The BOJ bought ¥150 billion ($1.04 billion) of 10-to-25 year debt on Tuesday.
The Bank of Japan is holding a two-day policy meeting through Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 30, 2023
Ueda faces market fallout risk as BOJ mulls yields, prices and yen
In a sign of just how fraught the discussions on policy may be, BOJ officials are likely to monitor yield movements until the very last minute.
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo. Nearly 40% of respondents of the latest Bloomberg Markets Live Pulse survey said Treasurys will face the most severe impact from the BOJ shifting away from superaccommodative policy.
BUSINESS
Oct 23, 2023
When Japan ends negative rate policy, Treasurys will suffer
The Bank of Japan is likely to unwind its unusual policy of subzero rates during the first half of 2024.
There are expectations that Japan’s life insurers may increase purchases of Japanese government bonds as yields rise at home along with signs that the central bank is edging toward a normalization of monetary policy.
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 13, 2023
Japan’s rising yields and yen hedging costs drive insurers to JGBs
Japanese government bonds are drawing interest amid signs that the central bank is edging toward a normalization of monetary policy.
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
BUSINESS
Sep 29, 2023
Biggest selloff in 25 years hits Japan bonds as BOJ loosens grip
The selloff is a reminder that the nation’s debt market relies in part on support from public-sector institutions to outperform global peers.
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
BUSINESS
Aug 21, 2023
BOJ adjustments show strain as record bond buying continues
Doubling the effective cap on benchmark yields in December and again last month has yet to significantly reduce the central bank's purchases.
Bloodied Trump survives assassination attempt at political rally
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is surrounded and evacuated by Secret Service agents at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. Trump was rushed off stage at the rally after shots rang out.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
Amid same-sex marriage ban, LGBTQ couples opt for 'photo weddings'
A lesbian couple, consisting of a 35-year-old woman (left) and 40-year-old woman, cover their faces with bouquets as they pose for wedding photos in Yokohama on Nov. 1.
China and Russia conduct joint Pacific military patrol
The Russian corvette Gromkiy enters the Chinese port of Zhanjiang as part of a joint China-Russia naval exercise on Saturday.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
After Trump shooting, U.S. presidential race might take a violent turn
United States Secret Service Counter Snipers stand guard on a rooftop during a campaign rally for U.S. President Donald Trump in Avoca, Pennsylvania, in 2020.
No AC this summer? No problem (for me).
Think air conditioning is a requirement for a Tokyo summer? Think again.
She’s paying ¥1 million to help behind the scenes at the Paris Olympics
Mai Tarumi, who previously volunteered at the postponed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, has a travel budget of ¥1 million for her trip to volunteer at the Paris Games.
How to tweak your diet when temperatures spike
Most people think of hydration as a strictly liquid-based concept, but eating foods with high water content is an essential part of making it through a Japanese summer unscathed.

Podcast

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.
Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
By Tomoko Otake

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