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December 21, 2024
 

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Mia Glass
The yen slumped to its weakest in level in more than two weeks on Wednesday as traders reacted to a report that BOJ officials saw little cost to waiting before raising rates.
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 12, 2024
Danger for yen emerges with speculation BOJ may stand pat longer
A small taste of the dangers ahead came Wednesday, when the yen slumped to its weakest in level in more than two weeks.
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 11, 2024
BOJ signals before meeting leave traders guessing
The confusion has caused sharp swings in market bets on rate hikes, with overnight indexed swaps pricing in a 22% chance of a December rate increase.
The headquarters of the Bank of Japan in Tokyo
BUSINESS
Dec 5, 2024
BOJ rate hike bets retreat as traders count down to key meeting
The predictions hardly budged even after one of the policy board’s most dovish members said he isn’t opposed to higher rates.
The yen carry trade is expected to ramp up next year, driven by wide gaps in interest rates, higher government borrowing in the U.S. and low volatility in currency markets, analysts say.
BUSINESS / Markets
Dec 3, 2024
Yen carry trade that rattled markets shows signs of a comeback
Japanese retail investors as well as leveraged funds and asset managers outside the country are estimated to have boosted bearish wagers on the yen in November.
The yen briefly breached the key ¥150 mark against the dollar on Friday, as traders' expectations for a rate hike by the Bank of Japan in December grow.
BUSINESS / Markets
Nov 29, 2024
Yen breaches key ¥150 level as Tokyo inflation fuels BOJ bets
The swaps market is now factoring in a 63% chance of a BOJ rate hike in December, twice the odds at the start of the month.
The likelihood of interest-rate hikes from the Bank of Japan and further cuts from the Federal Reserve will drive the yen's recovery to as far as ¥130 against the dollar, according to some strategists.
BUSINESS / Markets
Nov 18, 2024
Yen bulls lie in wait for U.S.-Japan yield gap to shrink next year
The likelihood of Bank of Japan interest-rate hikes and further Federal Reserve cuts will drive the yen's recovery, some say.
A screen showing the yen's exchange rate against the U.S. dollar in July
BUSINESS / Economy
Nov 5, 2024
Yen is the first of many Japanese assets set to pivot on U.S. election
Given the size and liquidity of its markets, Japan will be in particular focus during the U.S. election.
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo. There is growing speculation that the central bank will push ahead with rate hikes in the coming months, particularly as the yen continues to weaken.
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 23, 2024
Japan’s 40-year yield rises to highest since 2008 on Fed outlook
There is also growing speculation that the BOJ will push ahead with rate hikes in the coming months, particularly as the yen continues to weaken.
The prospect of the yen's further depreciation is prompting strategists to warn of increased intervention risk near the ¥150 level, or the 200-day moving average of ¥151.25.
BUSINESS / Economy
Oct 15, 2024
Intervention back on investors’ radars as yen weakens against dollar
The yen had its worst loss against the dollar since 2009 in the five days through Oct. 4.
Speculative investors flipped to a net long position on the yen just before Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said the nation wasn’t ready for further interest rate hikes, data shows.
BUSINESS / Markets
Oct 8, 2024
Hedge funds warming to yen caught out by biggest drop in 15 years
Many bought the yen just before cautious comments by Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba on rate hikes and strong U.S. nonfarm payrolls data.
Then yen strengthened on Monday beyond ¥140 per dollar ahead of a Federal Reserve policy meeting this week that is widely expected to see officials cut interest rates.
BUSINESS / Markets
Sep 16, 2024
Yen strengthens beyond ¥140 per dollar for first time since 2023
The currency appreciated as much as 0.6% versus the dollar to ¥139.96 on Monday, its strongest level since July last year.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda is scheduled to respond to questions from lawmakers in parliament on Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 22, 2024
BOJ governor set to face intense scrutiny after market chaos
Gov. Kazuo Ueda will respond to questions from lawmakers in the Lower House on Friday morning, and those in the Upper House in the afternoon.
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo. This week's market turmoil underscored how difficult it is for the central bank to limit market shocks as it unwinds years of extraordinary monetary stimulus.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 9, 2024
Mixed messages from BOJ leave traders guessing about its true aims
Investors are wondering how much faith they can put into the Bank of Japan following comments that appear to be damage control.
The government is considering introducing a new preclearance system for foreign visitors, starting with tourists from Taiwan, to help shorten the time taken for entry procedures on arrival.
JAPAN
Jul 19, 2024
Japan to speed up entry process as tourist wave hits new record
The government will introduce a new preclearance system from January, starting with tourists from Taiwan, NHK has reported.
Kazuto Oku, CEO of Norinchukin Bank, speaks during a news conference in Tokyo on May 22.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 20, 2024
Norinchukin sounds warning as higher-for-longer rates inflict losses
Signals from central banks that they are in no rush to cut rates have caught out many investors who'd been betting on more aggressive moves.
Visitors can make their own instant noodles at the Cup Noodles Museum in Yokohama.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 16, 2024
‘Mystery meat’ in cup noodles sells out in Japan as a solo product
For Nissin Food Products, tapping into new trends is a way to respond to consumers in a market that now offers a wide range of choices.
The average daily room rate of hotels in Japan for March marked the highest level since August 1997, as the country saw a record number of foreign visitors in March.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 19, 2024
Japan hotel prices near 30-year high as weak yen lures record tourists
The average daily room rate for March was about ¥20,986 ($136), the highest level since August 1997 and a nearly 20% increase from the same period in 2023.
The departure hall at Haneda Airport in Tokyo. Now with inflation at its strongest in decades, Japanese are starting to realize that years of static wages leave many of them budgeting each month before their next pay check.
BUSINESS / FOCUS
Apr 13, 2024
Japan’s young workers head abroad as huge wage gap persists
The outflow is also a sign that many Japanese aren’t buying into the nation’s economic optimism as it exits from decades of deflation.
A guest room at the Muji Hotel Ginza. Ryohin Keikaku, the brand’s parent company, now has a new business called Muji Stay, which brings under one umbrella the retailer’s existing hotels, homes and camps.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 12, 2024
Japan’s Muji bets minimalist retail will work for homes and hotels
Muji currently has three hotels — one in Ginza, one in Beijing and one in Shenzhen, with rooms often booked out months in advance
Customers browse Gashapon official shop “Ikebukuro Sohonten” in Tokyo.
BUSINESS / Companies
Apr 2, 2024
Top capsule-toy maker Bandai bets on huge market outside Japan
Machines for capsule toys have become ubiquitous in Japan, found not only in arcades, but also malls, supermarkets, airports and train stations.
Mother hopes for reunion with daughter ensnared by Tokyo host clubs
The Kabukicho district in Tokyo, where the daughter of a woman in her 60s fell deeply into the host club culture.
A year after going private, structural reforms bearing fruit for Toshiba
Toshiba's Corporate Senior Executive Vice President Koji Ikeya speaks during an interview in Tokyo on Monday.
Taiwan lawmakers brawl over bills that would 'damage democracy'
Lawmakers from the Democratic Progressive Party and opposition party Kuomintang brawl in parliament in Taipei on Friday.
Record 78% of people in Japan feel anxious, government survey finds
The public opinion survey on people's lives, conducted by the Cabinet Office, found that 28.1% of respondents think that their standard of living is at a lower-middle level among the general public — the highest percentage to give that response in 35 years.
Police raided suspect's home to arrest him after fatal Kitakyushu stabbing
Broken window glass is seen at Masanori Hirabaru's house in Kitakyushu's Kokuraminami Ward.
Japanese officials inspect Yokota Air Base over PFAS concerns
The Yokota Air Base in western Tokyo in September 2019. An inspection of the base by Japanese government officials on Friday came amid public pressure to investigate suspected links between the use of PFAS-containing firefighting foam by the U.S. base and contamination of soil and groundwater in western Tokyo.
Crime numbers rise in Japan for second straight year
A police officer stands in front of the residence of a man alleged to have stabbed two junior high school students in Kitakyushu.
A year of Oscar wins and a quiet push for diversity
Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s “Evil Does Not Exist,” released in Japanese theaters in April, sharply dramatizes the clash between rural and urban values. The film won five awards at the 2023 Venice Film Festival, including the second-place Silver Lion prize.
Curiosity didn’t kill the meme: Why cats still rule Japanese YouTube
A screen shot from YouTube user @lagelda shows the simplicity of going viral in Japan in 2024: A cat dancing to EDM in front of a green screen.
With rare Asia carrier deployment, France seeks greater interoperability
The flight deck of the French Navy's Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier during a stop at Changi Naval Base in Singapore in May 2019

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