Japan Economics Update Should the BoJ sell its ETF holdings at a discount? While selling its exchange-traded fund (ETF) holdings at book value to the government wouldn’t impair the Bank of Japan’s balance sheet, we don’t think it would provide the boost to fiscal revenue... 14th June 2023 · 4 mins read
Japan Economics Update Why are job vacancies so low in Japan? Job vacancies haven’t surged in Japan because the participation rate has risen since the start of the pandemic and there hasn’t been a “Great Resignation” amongst Japanese workers. With the labour... 5th June 2023 · 3 mins read
Japan Economics Update Has corporate Japan cleaned up its act? Many commentators have pinned the recent outperformance of Japan’s stock market on the stronger focus by Japanese firms to maximise shareholder value. But while those efforts showed some success in... 30th May 2023 · 3 mins read
Japan Economics Update Services inflation set to fall as input cost pressures ease Most of the recent acceleration in services inflation reflects pass-through of higher goods prices. While firms have become more willing to pass on higher input costs, we still think that sluggish... 22nd May 2023 · 3 mins read
Japan Economics Update Wage growth stronger than official figures suggest The slowdown in regular earnings at the start of the year largely reflects sampling changes, with an unchanged sample of firms reporting continued strong wage growth. However, with inflation set to... 4th May 2023 · 2 mins read
Japan Economics Update Yield Curve Control here to stay for now The Bank of Japan predicted that inflation will fall well below its 2% target in FY2025 when it kept policy settings unchanged today. And while it pledged to conduct a review into its policy measures... 28th April 2023 · 3 mins read
Japan Economics Update CRE downturn could deepen looming recession The turmoil in the US banking system is likely to set off the worst decline in Japan’s commercial real estate prices since the Global Financial Crisis by prompting foreign investors to stop buying... 27th April 2023 · 4 mins read
Japan Economics Update What to do about persistent corporate surpluses? A higher corporate tax would reduce corporate sector surpluses and could stimulate demand if the additional revenue were used to finance higher public spending or transfers to households. But the tax... 17th April 2023 · 5 mins read
Japan Economics Update Credit risk lurking in the shadows Japanese banks have nearly doubled their lending to overseas non-bank financial intermediaries over the past decade. Some of this reflects purchases of collateralised loan obligations, most of which... 30th March 2023 · 3 mins read
Japan Economics Update Quantifying the risks from banks’ foreign claims With bond yields now dropping back again, the drag from unrealised losses on banks’ capital ratios should start to reverse. However, a sharp increase in losses on banks’ foreign loan portfolio has yet... 21st March 2023 · 4 mins read
Global Economics Update What next after Credit Suisse? While the Credit Suisse rescue might draw a line under that particular institution’s problems, it is clear that confidence in the financial sector overall is still extremely fragile. So regardless of... 20th March 2023 · 5 mins read
Japan Economics Update Wage-price disinflation spiral looms This year’s Shunto should result in the strongest negotiated pay hikes in decades. But the average Japanese employee will have little to rejoice in. Weaker corporate profits as well as a likely... 15th March 2023 · 3 mins read
Japan Economics Update BoJ will probably end Yield Curve Control in April The Bank of Japan didn’t make any policy changes at Governor Kuroda’s last meeting today but we expect incoming Governor Ueda to abandon Yield Curve Control in April. 10th March 2023 · 3 mins read
Japan Economics Update The impact of higher bond yields on public finances The higher bond yields that would follow abandonment of Yield Curve Control would make it more difficult to stabilise Japan’s public finances. But the long maturity of government debt means that the... 22nd February 2023 · 4 mins read
Japan Economics Update Shunto not a leading indicator of wage growth The conventional wisdom is that the annual spring wage negotiations (Shunto) are a bellwether for wage growth. In reality, the small number of employees covered by the talks and their bias towards... 30th January 2023 · 2 mins read
FX Markets Update Stronger yen still on the cards despite the BoJ’s obstinance While the Bank of Japan pushed back against expectations that it would end its Yield Curve Control (YCC) policy yesterday, we think it is only a matter of time before YCC bites the dust. That suggests... 19th January 2023 · 4 mins read
