Tag - boj¥

 
 

BOJ¥

Japan's banks are benefiting from the Bank of Japan's policy shift and strong loan demand among their corporate clients.
BUSINESS / Companies
May 15, 2024
Japan’s biggest banks forecast record profits as rates rise
The banks are benefiting from an earnings boost following the Bank of Japan’s policy shift in March.
Gloomy economic conditions, especially weak consumption, raise questions over whether the Bank of Japan will be able to take further steps toward policy normalization.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 15, 2024
Japan GDP data expected to show contraction for first quarter
The preliminary data is expected to show that spending by consumers and companies fell, while net exports dragged on growth for the first time in a year.
Tokiko Shimizu, the Bank of Japan's first and only female director, has been replaced by Kazushige Kamiyama after finishing a four-year term.
BUSINESS
May 13, 2024
BOJ slips backward on diversity with all-male executive lineup
The BOJ slipped to 156th on an index of gender balance among central banks released this year.
Katsunobu Kato, former chief Cabinet secretary and a ruling party veteran, says the Bank of Japan must keep a close eye on economic conditions and coordinate carefully with the government in working out when to raise rates.
BUSINESS
May 13, 2024
Japan on track to normalize monetary policy, says ruling party heavyweight
The weak yen has inflated import costs, hurting consumption and creating headaches for policymakers looking to shore up a fragile economic recovery.
People walk near the Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo on April 26.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 10, 2024
BOJ must avoid raising rates to combat weak yen, says ex-official
Higher borrowing costs would hit consumption and services inflation, said Tsutomu Watanabe, an expert on price trends.
People in a shopping district in Tokyo in March
BUSINESS / Economy
May 10, 2024
Japan’s households cut outlays as inflation remains sticky
Real outlays decreased 1.2% in March from a year before, falling for the 13th consecutive month.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda speaks during a news conference after a two-day monetary policy meeting at the BOJ headquarters in Tokyo on April 26.
BUSINESS
May 9, 2024
Many BOJ board members saw need for steady rate hikes in April, records show
Some saw the chance of a faster-than-expected pace of interest rate hikes on prospects of inflation durably staying or exceeding the bank's 2% target.
Real wages fell 2.5% from a year earlier in March, marking the 24th straight month of declines, exacerbated by a 9.4% drop in bonuses.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 9, 2024
Real wages fell for 24th month in March, dented by 9.4% decline in bonuses
Data for full-time workers that avoid sampling problems and exclude bonuses and overtime pay grew by 2.3%, above 2% for the seventh month.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda speaks to reporters on Tuesday at the Prime Minister's Office following a meeting with Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 8, 2024
BOJ’s Ueda tweaks weak yen remarks in possible hint of rate hike
Yen weakness has escalated despite Japan’s first interest rate hike since 2007 in March.
Major banks as well as regional banks have raised their ordinary deposit rates to 0.02% per annum from 0.001%.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 6, 2024
Many banks in Japan raise deposit rates after BOJ action
Banks have also refrained from raising their lending rates, which would affect households and other corporate activities.
One analyst said Japanese policymakers "hid the intervention well," pointing to the ways they may have used to fund currency interventions recently.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 6, 2024
Market hunts for signs of yen intervention in Fed accounts
Recent data suggests that Japanese policymakers may have funded currency interventions using a Fed facility where central banks stash overnight cash.
Former U.S. Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers
BUSINESS / Economy
May 4, 2024
Ex-U.S. Treasury chief says currency interventions fail even at Japan’s scale
Policymakers likely spent some ¥9 trillion this week, an analysis of Bank of Japan accounts shows.
An electronic screen displays a graph showing Japanese yen exchange rates surging against the dollar amid signs of intervention by authorities, in Tokyo on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 3, 2024
Japan's May 1 intervention may have cost ¥3.66 trillion, BOJ data suggests
The yen was at around ¥157.55 per dollar when it suddenly spiked, strengthening as far as ¥153 over the next half hour.
Although current FX interventions are not yet a significant concern for the U.S. Treasury market, large-scale interventions by major holders like Japan or China could pose risks in the future.
COMMENTARY
May 2, 2024
U.S. bonds brace for impact of Japan’s currency moves
Japan holds substantial dollar reserves, but if depleted, it might resort to selling U.S. bonds, though other measures would likely be considered first.
An electronic screen in Tokyo displays the yen exchange rate against the U.S. dollar and the graph showing its recent swings, on Thursday.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 2, 2024
Yen swings stir talk that Japan is in the FX market once again
The yen advanced more than 3% and hit ¥153.04 per dollar as more than $4 billion of yen-related futures were exchanged.
Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda holds a news conference after a policy meeting at the BOJ's headquarters in Tokyo on March 19.
BUSINESS / Economy
May 2, 2024
BOJ saw need to let markets drive yields upon March exit: minutes
The bank ended eight years of negative interest rates and its bond yield control at its March policy meeting.
An electric screen displaying the Nikkei share average and yen exchange rate against the U.S. dollar outside a brokerage in Tokyo on Friday.
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
May 1, 2024
For Japan Inc., the weak yen may be too much of a good thing
The currency's weakness has pushed up costs of raw materials, food and fuel.
The root cause of yen weakness lies in the U.S., not Japan, with the currency falling to its weakest since around 1990.
COMMENTARY / Japan
May 1, 2024
Japan should leave its currency bazooka at home
The root cause of yen weakness lies in the U.S., not Japan. That makes the latter's options very limited.
An analysis of the Bank of Japan's accounts suggests an intervention of about ¥5.5 trillion took place on Monday to prop up the yen.
BUSINESS / Markets
May 1, 2024
BOJ accounts suggest Japan intervened to support yen
The Bank of Japan said its current account will probably fall ¥7.56 trillion — much bigger than the drop of about ¥2.1 trillion estimated.
A man walks past an electronic board displaying the exchange rate for the yen against the U.S. dollar (right) in Tokyo on Tuesday.
BUSINESS / Markets
Apr 30, 2024
Did Japan intervene to prop up the yen? Analysts think it did.
The size and timing of the swing indicates that the government stepped in after the currency fell significantly.

Longform

Things may look perfect to the outside world, but today's mom is fine with some imperfection at home.
How 'Reiwa moms' are reshaping motherhood in Japan