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Japan Times
WORLD
May 27, 2022

As Russia diverges from the global economy, Soviet-style scarcity looms

The economic toll on Russia, although difficult to quantify, has spread widely, from its largest companies to its small shops and workers.
Japan Times
WORLD
May 23, 2022

A hot, deadly summer with frequent blackouts is coming

Energy supplies are so fragile that there just won't be enough to go around, and power cuts will put lives at risk when there are no fans or air conditioners to provide relief.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
May 20, 2022

Japan loves its minicars. Can it embrace EV versions too?

Mitsubishi and Nissan have unveiled their takes on electrified minivehicles, possibly helping to spark a wider shift toward EVs in the nation.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
May 5, 2022

Federal Reserve chair vows to curb inflation with hikes that risk economic pain

On Wednesday, the Fed raised interest rates by 50 basis points for the first time since 2000, and Chair Jerome Powell says similar moves are on the table for June and July.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Apr 9, 2022

The huge endeavor to produce a tiny microchip

Microchips are in many ways the lifeblood of the modern economy. They are also intensive to produce and made on gigantic, ultraclean factory room floors that can be seven stories tall.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 8, 2022

Will the Ukraine invasion ease U.S.-China tensions?

Developments in recent weeks suggest that the Ukraine war may mark a turning point for bilateral U.S.-China relations, at least in the economic domain.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 30, 2022

Bank of Japan chief plays down yen impact of bond-buying operations

Gov. Kuroda met Kishida after another morning of aggressive moves by the BOJ to keep a lid on 10-year yields that have been hovering close to the central bank's upper limit.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Mar 30, 2022

Inversion of U.S. Treasurys yield curve seen by Wall Street as warning of recession

So-called yield curve inversion is a key metric investors watch, as bond yields impact other asset prices, feed through to banks' returns and are an indicator of how the economy will fare.
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 25, 2022

Only in America can gas prices be turned into a political time bomb

Other countries use tax cuts and subsidies to soften the impact of higher fuel costs on consumers. Congress should bite the bullet and do the same.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy
Mar 14, 2022

World’s central banks set policy for economies shaken by the war

Global central banks this week will offer the biggest collective assessment of a changed world since Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Mar 9, 2022

Sanctions and sanctuary: Japan responds to Russia's war in Ukraine

As Vladimir Putin's grim war in Ukraine escalates, The Economist's Tokyo bureau chief, Noah Sneider, joins to discuss the reasons for the conflict, the lengths to which Japan is supporting Ukraine, and how the war will redefine relationships between Japan and its northern neighbor, Russia.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 27, 2022

How the computer chip shortage could incite a U.S. conflict with China

The war game and study by the Center for a New American Security illustrate how dependent the world is on Taiwanese computer chips.
COMMENTARY / Japan / Geoeconomic Briefing
Jan 11, 2022

Firms see U.S.-China tensions as economic security threat, survey shows

Tokyo needs to look at constructing a stable relationship with Washington and Beijing, despite their confrontations, to ease Japanese companies' fears.
Japan Tobacco was the most popular investment destination among Nippon Individual Savings Account account holders at SBI Securities.
BUSINESS
May 5, 2024

Half of new NISA investments went to Japanese stocks

Japan Tobacco was the most popular investment destination among NISA account holders at SBI Securities.
Nomura Holdings is targeting 20% revenue gains for its global markets unit over the next few years.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 7, 2024

Nomura targets 20% revenue growth from global markets business

The target builds on last year's 8% growth and follows a two-year revamp of trading teams for its rates and fixed-income business in Asia and EMEA.
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
BUSINESS / Markets
May 20, 2024

Japan’s 10-year bond yield hits decade high amid BOJ policy bets

The yield on 10-year government debt rose to a level last seen when the then newly appointed Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda was starting his radical monetary easing.
At the factory of 4R Energy Corp. in Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, a lithium-ion electric vehicle battery is disassembled to be reused. Batteries and EVs are among the strategic industries governments around the world aim to support through their industrial policies.
COMMENTARY / Japan / Geoeconomic Briefing
May 20, 2024

Grasping industrial policy in the age of economic security

A new era of industrial policies is structured around three P's: promoting strategic industries, protecting emerging technologies and partnering with like-minded countries.
The main targets of a new bill on smartphone software are the app stores provided by Google and Apple, as consumers effectively have only two choices for smartphone operating systems: Apple's iOS or Google’s Android.
BUSINESS / Tech
May 22, 2024

Japan aims to curb Apple and Google's smartphone app duopoly

A new bill would compel dominant platforms to allow third parties to launch their own app markets and to offer more payment options.
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.
Nomura Holdings Chief Executive Officer Kentaro Okuda
BUSINESS / Companies
May 24, 2024

Nomura pay for top executives rises 150% as profit rebounds

Total compensation paid to the firm’s eight executive officers in the year ended March 31 rose to ¥4.46 billion.
Takashi Miike (front left) is among the big-name directors slated to work with K2 Pictures, a new film production startup that aims to disrupt the Japanese film industry.
CULTURE / Film / Wide Angle
May 25, 2024

Can K2's goal of creating a better film industry in Japan win over skeptics?

While established auteurs such as Takashi Miike, Miwa Nishikawa and Hirokazu Kore-eda are slated to work with the startup, it still faces an uphill struggle.
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.
Debt rating firms have raised SoftBank Group’s grade as the Tokyo-based company’s earnings from investments begin to stabilize.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jun 13, 2024

SoftBank’s bond underwriting fee drops for first time in decade

The firm paid brokerages ¥1.10 per ¥100 to underwrite ¥550 billion of seven-year notes for individual investors, according to a company filing.
Core inflation in Tokyo accelerated in June on rising fuel bills and the boost to import costs from a weak yen, keeping alive expectations for a near-term interest rate hike by the central bank.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jun 28, 2024

Tokyo inflation quickens, keeping BOJ on track for rate hike

Consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 2.1% in the capital, accelerating from 1.9% in May.
The WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund saw an outflow of more than $400 million last week, the most since 2018.
BUSINESS / Markets
Aug 13, 2024

Yen-hedged ETF suffers exodus of cash from carry-trade fiasco

The fund’s cash withdrawal last week now puts it on pace for its worst month of outflows since December 2018, though it still has a positive haul overall for the year.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris hosts a roundtable discussion with Japanese business executives from companies in the semiconductor industry in Tokyo on Sept. 28, 2022. In a recent survey, some 43% of Japanese firms polled said they preferred a Harris presidency.
BUSINESS / Companies
Aug 15, 2024

Japan firms see Harris presidency as better for business than Trump

The results of a Reuters survey reflect respondents' concerns about protectionism and policy unpredictability.
A tug boat assists a container ship to its berth in Long Beach, California, on June 17.
BUSINESS / Economy
Aug 19, 2024

Busiest U.S. ports absorb import surge nearing pandemic-era frenzy

The ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, which account for roughly a third of all U.S. container imports, had their third-strongest month ever in July.
A Canadian retailer's bid to buy the operator of 7-Eleven convenience stores follows the introduction last year of government guidelines on mergers and acquisitions instructing companies to seriously consider takeover offers.
BUSINESS / Companies / ANALYSIS
Aug 27, 2024

Seven & I takeover proposal tests Japan’s evolving investor-friendly stance

The proposed purchase of the convenience store operator follows government guidelines instructing companies to seriously consider takeover offers.
Despite current limitations, the progression toward practical humanoid robots is anticipated, driven by advancements in technology and artificial intelligence.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 1, 2024

The future of robots is coming on two legs

Unlike traditional robots, which have already transformed industries with their transport capabilities, bipedal robots are still in the early stages of deployment.
Looming interest-rate cuts by the Federal Reserve and a new hawkishness on the part of the Bank of Japan can make a claim for the yens recent movements.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Sep 13, 2024

Epic yen rally is a lesson in the lost art of FX intervention

Japan's own proactive currency interventions have played a crucial role in the yen's recent recovery.

Longform

After pandemic-era border regulations eased, Indian migrants began returning to Japan. Their population now stands at more than 50,000 across the country.
How remote work is rewriting the migrant experience in Japan