Hiroshi Yamagiwa - The Japan Times

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Hiroshi Yamagiwa

For Hiroshi Yamagiwa's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:

JAPAN

Sep 9, 1999

Experts differ over forces behind positive GDP data

JAPAN

Sep 8, 1999

U.S. firm eases decision-making on pension options

JAPAN

Aug 3, 1999

Yasuda Kasai CIGNA eyes 5% of 401(k) market

JAPAN

Jul 20, 1999

Experts ponder state's next great spending project

JAPAN

Jul 2, 1999

401(K): Principal seeks market entry, potential partner

JAPAN

May 26, 1999

The 401(K) Approach: Skandia eyes pension plan gains

First in an occasional series

JAPAN

May 25, 1999

Some wary as pension plight casts 401(k) in rosy light

JAPAN

Apr 23, 1999

Miyazawa to state position on debt-relief at G7 meeting

Finance Minister Kiichi Miyazawa will attend a Monday meeting of the Group of Seven industrial nations in Washington to put forward his ideas to prevent a financial crisis in emerging market countries.

JAPAN

Feb 5, 1999

Will government bonds help? It's a trick question

Debate on how Japan can pull itself out of its worst postwar economic slump has entered a new stage.

JAPAN

Feb 2, 1999

Fukushima urges Japan, U.S. to talk over trade differences

Now that Washington has decided to revive the controversial "Super 301" procedure, Japan should start market-opening discussions with the U.S. to prevent trade conflicts, according to Glen S. Fukushima, a former deputy assistant U.S. trade representative for Japan and China.

JAPAN

Jan 28, 1999

U.S. policy, experts called obstacle to stable foreign exchange

U.S. trade policy and influential American economists are obstacles to creating a system to enforce a trading band for yen-dollar exchange rates, according to Kenichi Ohno, an advocate of such a system.

JAPAN

Jan 18, 1999

Miyazawa qualifies 0.5% target, notes job, bank roles

Economic development in the January-March period — especially in the areas of employment and bank recapitalization — is crucial to achieve the government's 0.5 percent growth target for fiscal 1999, Finance Minister Kiichi Miyazawa said Monday.

JAPAN

Dec 31, 1998

Japan best brace itself for the euro

JAPAN

Nov 2, 1998

New minister pushes for future financial safety net

JAPAN

Oct 14, 1998

DPJ's Ikeda calls new bill 'opaque,' counterproductive

Staff writer The banking sector crisis will continue because of the "opaque" bank recapitalization bill, Motohisa Ikeda, a key member of the Democratic Party of Japan, said Wednesday. The bill, expected to be enacted Friday, will not enable accurate assessment of bank assets, sufficient injection of public funds, or ease the credit crunch, Ikeda said in an interview."It is only prolonging the crisis," he said, adding that the banking trouble will become worse through February."The problem of capital-short banks will probably have to be tackled again at some point. The DPJ's revised bill may become necessary then."A director of the Lower House special committee on financial stabilization, Ikeda has played the leading role in the DPJ, the largest opposition party, in coping with the banking issues. He was one of the legislators from several parties who jointly drafted financial revitalization bills to handle the paralyzed Long-Term Credit Bank of Japan and other banks in case of failure.But the bank recapitalization bill, which copes with weak banks before they fail, will become law without amendments the DPJ considers necessary.Ikeda said it is "nonsense" to discuss the government's forced capital injection, because the assessment of banks' assets remains vague. The idea has been floated because few of the eligible banks are expected to voluntarily apply for capital injection, which could mean a declaration of poor management.Such banks could instead try to prop up their capital adequacy ratios by further tightening their lending, a nightmare for many cash-strapped firms.The ruling party-drafted bank bill, which is supported by two opposition groups, would reserve 25 trillion yen in public funds to boost banks' capital bases. This plan is to replace the existing 13 trillion yen fund designed for a similar purpose.But Ikeda said, "I am concerned that the 13 trillion yen problem will not be solved," referring to the capital injection of 1.8 trillion yen to 21 banks in March, based on the insufficient examination of applicant banks.All the recipient banks were judged sound at the time. But they have not carried out radical restructuring measures or eased their lending, and one of the banks, the Long Term Credit Bank, virtually failed a few months later.The Liberal Democratic Party's bill will allow banks to opt for the cost method where their stockholdings are evaluated by purchase prices and thus do not reflect market values.Ikeda said this will artificially boost banks' capital adequacy ratios and hide their real weakness. Capital injection based on such inadequate standards will not solve the problems, he said.The DPJ has called for mandating banks to adopt the lower of either purchase price or market price in assessing market values.Now that the recapitalization bill's enactment is certain, the next battle for Ikeda is over a Financial Resuscitation Committee, which is to be set up as early as next month under the law enacted Monday. The independent panel will handle failed banks and have the authority to decide on capital injections to weak but viable banks.Ikeda said a state minister must not double as the committee head, although Hiromu Nonaka, chief cabinet secretary, is reportedly a candidate. Four other members of the committee must have a practical knowledge of financial issues, unlike those serving at a similar panel at the Deposit Insurance Corp., who "blindly" gave a green light to the March capital injection, he added.The DPJ will oppose any inadequate appointment of panel members as the appointment requires Diet approval, he said. He will also closely monitor the panel process of designing detailed rules so that bureaucrats do not write them to serve their own interests, he said.

JAPAN

Oct 5, 1998

Investment firm puts trust in disclosure

18th in an occasional series on financial deregulationStaff writerAlliance Capital Investment Trust Management Inc. of Tokyo is attempting to calm anxious customers by fully explaining how their funds have been hurt amid global financial instability, company President Takahiro Fujino said.The severe economic environment actually has come at a "very good time," as December deregulation of banks' direct fund sales draws near, Fujino said in a recent interview.A subsidiary of a New York-based asset management firm, Alliance plans to choose "five or six" Japanese banks and insurance firms to distribute its funds, Fujino said, adding it is near agreements with two of them. "You will not have to buy high. You will be able to start investing at a low value," he said, explaining to a customer the advantage of the lower value of funds.Yet even under the liberalization, "Funds may not sell well because people are becoming very nervous about risk. But retailors could become very strong at such a time, as opposed to when the market is booming," he said, referring to the long-term benefits to the industry.Alliance's troubles were caused by Russia's devaluation of the ruble and effective default on foreign debt payments in mid-August, and by the global financial turmoil that followed, especially in emerging market economies.The firm's net assets, which totaled 742 billion yen in July, had plunged by more than 20 percent as of last month. Two of the seven funds the firm manages that mainly invest in bonds in emerging market economies and high-yield bonds in the United States also have suffered from the yen's rise against the dollar since August, Fujino said.But such short-term risks are inherent in the funds, and stopgap measures will not help, he said, stressing the importance of long-term investment. Instead, the firm has been fully disclosing information about the fall in its funds' value to individual customers and securities firms that sell them, according to the president.The two funds had been very popular because of their high performance -- the other side of high risk -- and monthly distribution of yields, Fujino said. The weakening trend of the yen, which boosts the relative value of assets abroad, also made the funds attractive.The funds helped Alliance, set up only two years ago, gain the second-largest net asset total -- after Goldman Sachs Investment Trust Management -- out of nearly 20 foreign-originated investment trust firms operating in Japan.In an investment trust fund -- the Japanese equivalent of a mutual fund in the U.S. -- investor money is pooled and professionally managed in stocks or bonds. Gains from investments, if any, are distributed to the investors, who also risk losing money.Fujino said it is "revolutionary" that Japanese banks, which have long dealt with conventional savings, recently have placed importance on the asset management business.

JAPAN

Aug 19, 1998

In with a Bang: Fidelity finds favor in recession

17th in an occasional series on financial deregulation

JAPAN

Jul 24, 1998

Fiscal policymakers face uphill task with economy

and YOSUKE NAITOStaff writers

JAPAN

Jul 15, 1998

Prudential-Mitsui venture to focus on customer needs

JAPAN

Jul 13, 1998

LDP setback may rock Asia for some time: HKMA chief

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.

[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

When trying to trace your lineage in Japan, the "koseki" is the most important form of document you'll encounter.

Climbing the branches of a Japanese family tree

By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Prize winner Maki Imoto catches light with glass

Prize winner Maki Imoto catches light with glass

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