Japan Economics Update Bank of Japan will hike in May as inflation overshoots While US tariffs are a headwind, the continued acceleration in consumer prices will only heighten concerns among Bank of Japan’s Board members about inflation overshooting its 2% target. As the Bank... 28th March 2025 · 4 mins read
Global Economics Update The implications of US vehicle tariffs In this Update, we answer several key questions about how the announced 25% tariffs on US imports of autos and parts might affect the global economy and the US itself. Mexico, Slovakia and Korea are... 27th March 2025 · 7 mins read
Japan Economics Update Bank of Japan will lift rates to 1.5% by 2027 With the Bank of Japan sounding a bit more worried about downside risks to activity from US tariffs than about upside risks to inflation, we’re pushing back our forecast for the next rate hike from... 19th March 2025 · 3 mins read
Japan Economics Update What to make of the slowdown in core inflation There are good reasons for the BoJ to strip out only fresh food rather than all food from its preferred measure of core inflation. To be sure, the fact that inflation excluding all food and energy has... 14th March 2025 · 3 mins read
Global Economics Update Is the US bloc splintering? The events of the past two weeks have called into question whether the US is severing ties not just with adversaries such as China but also allies, including Canada, Mexico and the European Union... 4th March 2025 · 6 mins read
Japan Economics Update Japan entering Trump’s firing line Japanese firms will suffer some collateral damage from the 25% US tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico. And if Trump presses ahead with tariffs on imports from Japan, carmakers would be most... 4th March 2025 · 4 mins read
Event Japan Drop-In: The Shunto, the Bank of Japan and the inflation and policy outlook 1741939200 Will the Bank of Japan be doing a victory lap this year in its quest to get inflation sustainably to 2%?
Japan Economics Update Why are Japan’s households not partying like its 1989? While household incomes are rising the most since the early 1990s, households are saving rather than spending the bulk of those gains. And with real income growth set to slow this year, we expect... 17th February 2025 · 3 mins read
Japan Economics Update Slower food inflation won’t stop BoJ from hiking rates Soaring food inflation has been the key driver behind the recent strength in headline inflation. Processed food inflation will remain high for a while yet but that won’t prevent overall food inflation... 13th February 2025 · 4 mins read
Japan Economics Update Japan’s rice inflation will plunge this year The largest increase in rice prices on record has provided a sizeable boost to inflation in recent months but we expect rice inflation to slow sharply this year. While our forecast is a 0.6%-pt... 5th February 2025 · 3 mins read
Japan Economics Update Japan’s labour market to remain tight despite rate hikes The experience from other advanced economies is that there’s no hard and fast rule for how long it will take for the labour market to loosen in response to rate hikes by the Bank of Japan. But with... 27th January 2025 · 4 mins read
Japan Economics Update Bank of Japan will lift rates to 1.25% by mid-2026 The Bank of Japan signalled further tightening when it lifted its policy rate to 0.5% today. With inflation set to remain above its 2% target this year, we expect the policy rate to reach 1.25% next... 24th January 2025 · 3 mins read
Japan Economics Update Higher bond yields not a threat to fiscal health yet We aren’t overly worried about the impact of higher bond yields on Japan’s public finances because rising interest rates are a direct consequence of higher inflation. With the effective interest rate... 21st January 2025 · 4 mins read
Global Economics Update What do we mean by geopolitical blocs? The Cold War was defined by geopolitical blocs – the Soviet or Eastern bloc against the Western bloc. Geopolitics retreated with the collapse of the Soviet Union. The period from the early-1990s to... 7th January 2025 · 3 mins read
Japan Economics Update BoJ taking its time but will speed up tightening in 2025 The Bank of Japan's decision to leave rates on hold for a third consecutive meeting was not a great surprise. But in the post-meeting press conference Governor Ueda sounded in no hurry at all to... 19th December 2024 · 4 mins read
Global Markets Update New forecasts for Japan’s financial markets We now think the 10-year JGB yield will rise further, the yen will make more ground against the US dollar, and Japan’s equities will struggle to make much headway (in yen terms). 2nd December 2024 · 3 mins read
