Business / Financial Markets Nov 24, 2020
Big investors in Japan may be cashing in on global stock rally
Japanese funds have reaped a 27% return as a stimulus-fueled rally propelled global equities to a record high.
Masaki Kondo
For Masaki Kondo's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Business / Financial Markets Oct 20, 2020
More Australian QE threatens a source of yield for Japan investors
Options for Japanese investors, among the biggest buyers of global debt, have shrunk this year as central banks slashed rates.
Business / Financial Markets Aug 23, 2017
Thinking the unthinkable: Japan's stocks slip free of yen's grip
It's still early, but there are signs Japan's equity market is approaching escape velocity when it comes to a force that has entranced it for years. It's the yen, whose level against the dollar has generally been all you needed to know to tell where ...
Business / Financial Markets Feb 10, 2015
BOJ puts bond market on course for extinction by 2027: Japan Credit
At the pace the central bank is purchasing government bonds, Japan's sovereign debt market will be extinct by 2027. The ¥616 trillion of JGBs now available to markets would shrink by about ¥52 trillion a year under current policies, making all of the securities either ...
Business / Financial Markets May 9, 2014
Yen may soar if BOJ misses inflation goal
The Bank of Japan's failure to achieve its inflation target will see the yen rebound to its highest since 2012, reversing the results of its unprecedented stimulus, according to Tokai Tokyo Securities Co. The currency will strengthen beyond 85 per dollar "by this fall," said ...
Business / Economy | ANALYSIS Apr 9, 2014
Kuroda eyes yen-weakening action
Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda has shown that a single unprecedented expansion of monetary policy has more impact than a series of smaller steps, and economists say he's preparing to prove it again. The yen has tumbled almost 9 percent since Kuroda doubled monthly ...
Business / Financial Markets Mar 24, 2014
Kuroda ¥100 wall reassuring Nomura after gains
The Bank of Japan's stimulus is building a wall against the yen gaining beyond ¥100 to the dollar, amid an investor flight into the currency as a haven, according to Nomura Holdings Inc. The yen has climbed 3 percent against the greenback this year, set ...
Business / Economy | ANALYSIS Mar 3, 2014
Yen's fading clout threat to BOJ inflation goal
The rising cost of overseas travel and imported goods such as Apple computers is spurring concern in Japan's bond market that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's success in fueling inflation will be short-lived. ANA Holding Inc. and Haagen-Dazs Co. increased prices as the yen's inflation-adjusted value ...
Business / Economy Jan 6, 2014
Arrival of 'bad inflation' trend bodes ill for Japan's rebound
Price increases are prompting Japanese shoppers to buy less mayonnaise, showing the fragility of any economic rebound unless wages keep up with living costs. Production of the sauce fell 5.1 percent in the five months that ended on Nov. 30 from a year earlier, which ...
Business | ELECTION 2012 Dec 15, 2012
JGB market braces for Abe's return
The worst prime minister for Japanese government bonds in almost two decades is poised to return, ousting the best since 2006. Shinzo Abe, the front-runner to replace Yoshihiko Noda in Sunday's general election, oversaw a 1.2 percent gain when he was in office for a ...