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July 16, 2024
 

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ECONOMY

Ever since the Bank of Japan ended its negative rate policy, calls for the government to strengthen its fiscal discipline have been growing, with the country being haunted by public debt that is about twice the size of its gross domestic product.
BUSINESS / Economy / FOCUS
May 30, 2024
Two cheers for the end of free money in Japan
Corporations are better prepared for more expensive money than they were in the past, with strong balance sheets and a better understanding of risk.
Trade no longer generates a surplus in Japan, reflecting a surge in the cost of energy imports and an increase in offshore production.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 30, 2024
Yen's relentless slide revives Japan's interest in structural reforms
The currency's persistent weakness has alerted policymakers to more fundamental drivers behind it, such as the nation's dwindling global competitiveness.
An LDP panel's proposal on fiscal policy underscores how a weak yen and an exit from ultra-low interest rates are piling pressure on Japan to rein in its huge public debt.
BUSINESS
May 30, 2024
Japan must restore fiscal discipline to protect yen's value, LDP panel says
The views of the panel of Liberal Democratic Party lawmakers are shared by the powerful Finance Ministry, who oversees the state budget.
With the recent focus on the yen and individual investing, the phrase "Mrs. Watanabe" — one of the most common pieces of jargon in Japanese financial circles — has seen a resurgence.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 29, 2024
My search for the original 'Mrs. Watanabe'
Yen retail traders are back in the spotlight. But where did the phrase for the archetypal Japanese housewife investor come from?
Notwithstanding the increase in EV sales, there are now more cars than ever powered by internal-combustion engines.
COMMENTARY / World
May 14, 2024
Nevermind those EVs — oil demand keeps growing
The oil bulls still have reason to worry: With OPEC+ trying to keep prices as close as possible to $100 a barrel, non-OPEC supply, including from biofuels, keeps surging.
Foreign private credit funds are focusing on Japanese investors as they move more money into higher-paying assets.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 29, 2024
Private credit chases Japan’s trillions as inflation spurs shift
Private credit funds are betting that inflation will prompt investors to channel more money into riskier overseas investments.
Seiji Adachi, member of the policy board at the Bank of Japan
BUSINESS / Economy
May 29, 2024
BOJ policymaker hints of rate hike if yen fall has big impact on inflation
While short-term currency moves alone would not trigger a policy shift, the central bank could raise interest rates if excessive yen falls persist.
Bruno Le Maire, France's finance minister, speaks at an event in Nesle, France, in April 2023.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 27, 2024
China’s industry threatens entire global economy, France warns
Leading industrialized nations are coalescing for a tougher and more united challenge to overcapacities in China.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda speaks at the central bank's annual international conference in Tokyo on Monday.
BUSINESS
May 27, 2024
BOJ to 'proceed cautiously' with inflation-targeting frameworks
Gov. Kazuo Ueda said Japan has "made progress in moving away from zero and lifting inflation expectations."
U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Janet Yellen holds a news conference ahead of a meeting of Group of Seven finance ministers and central bank governors in Stresa, Italy, on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 26, 2024
China slammed in G7 show of unity threatening trade escalation
The Group of Seven ministers and bankers accused the world’s second-biggest economy of hurting the economies of its trade partners.
Bank of Italy Gov. Fabio Panetta (left), French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire (center) and Italian Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti pose for a picture at the Group of Seven finance chiefs and central bank governors' meeting in Stresa, Italy, on Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 25, 2024
China fear grips G7 with draft raising alarm at ‘harmful’ trade
A draft communique formulated at the Group of Seven meeting in the lakeside resort of Stresa introduces much stronger language than before.
Japan's top currency diplomat, Masato Kanda, poses for a photograph during an interview at the Finance Ministry in Tokyo in January 2022.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 25, 2024
Japan issues fresh warning on yen drops and signals readiness to intervene
The finance minister also said he was in frequent contact with overseas counterparts, particularly in the U.S., on issues including financial markets.
As companies lose once-stable investors through the unwinding of cross-shareholdings, they are now hoping that rewarding long-term individual shareholders will help make them more resilient in possible proxy battles.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 24, 2024
Japanese firms woo individuals as cross-shareholdings shrink
In a bid to protect themselves from activist investors, firms are trying to build loyalty with long-term individual shareholders by doling out gifts.
The captain of a port pilot boat approaches a container ship outside the Port of Los Angeles in Los Angeles.
WORLD / Politics
May 24, 2024
A new trade war offers no easy way back for old global order
Then-U.S. President Donald Trump fired the first shots with tariffs on China seven years ago, then President Joe Biden ushered the U.S. into the new industrial policy age.
Japan's core inflation slowed for a second straight month in April due to milder food inflation.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 24, 2024
Japan’s inflation cools as BOJ waits for wage gains to kick in
Consumer prices excluding those for fresh food rose 2.2% year on year in April, matching analysts’ estimates and marking a 25th month of staying above the BOJ's 2% target.
Japan's real wages in fiscal 2023 were down for the second straight year, as steady wage growth failed to keep pace with inflation.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 23, 2024
Japan's fiscal 2023 real wages show sharpest drop in nine years
Real wages were down for the second straight year, as steady wage growth failed to keep pace with inflation.
Joe Biden’s tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles and other imports are more than symbolic — they are a signal that the U.S. won’t accept a surge of imports that could undermine crucial parts of his administration’s agenda.
COMMENTARY / World
May 21, 2024
The U.S. is preparing for a second 'China shock'
The immediate impact of these tariffs will be small, because the United States currently imports very few of the affected goods from China.
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida says his administration is committed to capital market reforms to attract more foreign investments.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 23, 2024
Kishida makes public push on capital market reforms
Kishida's appearance at a conference held by Wall Street bank Morgan Stanley was another example of Japan's effort to shed the image of being unwelcoming to foreign investors.
Service prices, a key component of Japan’s inflation data, may be sturdier than in the past.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 23, 2024
Steady and widening service price rises may spur BOJ’s next move
Service prices, a key component of Japan’s inflation data, may be sturdier than in the past.
Some strategists have predicted that Japan’s 10-year sovereign yield will rise to 2% by the end of 2026.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 22, 2024
Japan yields have room to rise after 1% reached on BOJ bets
The focus turns now to how quickly the supereasy monetary policy will be dialed back and how much further yields may rise.
Who needs AI when you have Hatsune Miku?
Over the first six months of 2024, a handful of songs using Vocaloid singer Hatsune Miku’s voice have enjoyed widespread attention, underlining a global interest in the character and the technology she represents.
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.
Shooter came within inches of killing Trump, but left few clues as to why
An aerial view shows the stage where Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump had been standing during an assassination attempt the day before, and the roof of a nearby building where a gunman was shot dead by law enforcement, in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Sunday.
Yen’s woes seem too big for even a BOJ hike this month to solve
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
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.
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.

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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