Japan
BoJ leaves policy unchanged, sees slow recovery
The Bank of Japan left its monetary policy unchanged on Tuesday 16 December, reports AFP. It also released its December monthly report saying that it expects the Japanese economy to continue its export-led recovery at a slow pace. Most parts of the…
BoJ's Fukui on the current economic situation
In a speech on the current economic situation and the route to sustainable growth given on 8 December, Toshihiko Fukui of the Bank of Japan said Japan's economy is starting to recover gradually, after a period of generally flat economic activity that…
Japan's economy set to grow 1.5 percent
Japan's Cabinet Office said on Tuesday 9 December that the economy is expected to grow by 1.5 per cent in 2004, according to the Mainichi Daily News. It also predicted that moderate deflation will continue through 2004, forecasting the consumer price…
BoJ's Fukui on achieving sustainable growth
In a speech on 'Achieving Sustainable Growth' given on 28 November, Toshihiko Fukui of the Bank of Japan said the BoJ's framework for quantitative easing coupled with measures to strengthen the transmission mechanism of monetary policy will improve the…
OECD: Japan needs to fix its price problem
The OECD has urged continued reforms in Japan to allow a sustained recovery, according to a report by Pacific Business News. OECD economist Yutaka Imai called on the Japanese government to stimulate economic activity to stop prices from slipping.
BoJ to inject $9.1 billion to help stabilize mkt
The Bank of Japan is prepared to inject $9.1 billion into the financial system in an effort to stabilise markets, according to Associated Press. PM Junichiro Koizumi approved a decision on Saturday 29 November to purchase all of Ashikaga Financial Group…
Bank of Japan Monthly Report, November 2003
The Bank of Japan published the English version of its November 2003 Monthly Report of Recent Economic and Financial Developments on 26 November. The Report said the economy was recovering - effectively upgrading its assessment for the third straight…
BOJ falls into red for first time in over 30 years
The Bank of Japan said on Thursday 27 November that it made a loss in the April-September period for the first time in 30 years, according to Reuters. The main reason for the loss was the rise in long-term yields which resulted in a 793.8 billion yen…
Bank of Japan's Monetary Policy Meeting Minutes
Minutes of the Bank of Japan's Monetary Policy Meeting on 9 and 10 October 2003, released 27 November. Consumer prices were basically projected to continue falling gradually although it was possible that the year-on-year decline might stop temporarily…
Bank of Japan Monetary Policy Meeting, 21 Nov
At the Bank of Japan's Monetary Policy Meeting held on 21 November, the bank decided, by unanimous vote, to set unchanged guidelines for money market operations for the intermeeting period.
BoJ confirms economy is recovering
In its November monthly report released on Friday 21 November, the Bank of Japan confirmed that the economy is recovering "gradually", according to the Business Times. Although consumption remains weak, the BoJ said "Exports are increasing and capital…
Opening date of BOJ Representative Office, Beijing
The Bank of Japan will open its representative office in Beijing on 18 December 2003. As a result, there will be multiple BOJ representative offices in Asia as well as the Americas and Europe. The bank said it hopes this network of representative offices…
Bank of Japan's Ueda reiterates ultra-loose policy
Bank of Japan policy board member Kazuo Ueda said in a speech reported by AFX that the BoJ could maintain its ultra-loose monetary policy even after deflation is overcome, if it is judged necessary to maintain the policy.
Fukui on the Japanese economy and Asia
In a speech on 'The Japanese Economy and Asia' given on 26 September, Toshihiko Fukui of the Bank of Japan said there is an increasing probability that the Bank's standard scenario released in April, a virtuous cycle of recovery in which an increase in…
Executives face pay cut at Bank of Japan
The Bank of Japan (BOJ) said last Tuesday that it will cut annual pay for its executives for fiscal 2003 by 2.9% from the previous year, Kyodo News reported. The decision follows a cut by the same margin in fiscal 2003 pay for special government…
Fukui-Further enhancing Japan's financial services
In the speech 'Toward the Further Enhancement of Financial Services in Japan' given on 4 November Toshihiko Fukui of the Bank of Japan concluded by saying that, as Japan's efforts to enhance financial services bear fruit, I am confident that there will…
Fukui on the current state of the Japanese economy
In a speech given on 1 October, Toshihiko Fukui of the Bank of Japan said that although it is unprecedented for the central bank to purchase asset-backed securities in that it directly accepts the credit risk pertaining to private-sector debt, the bank…
Bank of Japan maintains current monetary policy
The Bank of Japan said in a statement released on Friday 31 October after its Policy Board meeting that it would continue with its ultra-loose policy aimed at keeping the overnight loan rate at virtually zero, according to AFX Europe.
BoJ expects deflation to continue into 2005
In its twice-yearly economic report released Friday the Bank of Japan said that it expects deflation to continue through to March 2005, according to AFX Asia. "Consumer prices are forecast to continue posting small declines in this and next fiscal year …
BoJ's Fukui on Restructuring Japan's Economy
In the speech 'Restructuring Japan's Economy' given on 28 October Toshihiko Fukui of the Bank of Japan said financial institutions need to strengthen their risk-taking ability. At the same time, we require a framework in which the optimum allocation of…
Fukui chief vows to fight deflation
Toshihiko Fukui, governor of the Bank of Japan, said on Tuesday 28 October that he sees no immediate end to Japan's deflation problem, according to AFP, but he pledged to continue the struggle with high levels of liquidity. "Just because we have a…
BOJ in negative net worth if JGB yields jump-Ueda
BoJ Policy Board member Kazuo Ueda said in a speech reported by Reuters that if the value of Japanese Government Bonds was to drop 10 per cent the Bank of Japan will be in negative net worth. Ueda warned of growing risks to the BoJ's balance sheet.
Koizumi aide raps BOJ for deflation failure
Former vice-minister for international affairs at Japan's finance ministry Haruhiko Kuroda on Sunday 26 October launched a strong attack on the Bank of Japan (BOJ) for failing to perform its legal duty of halting deflation, according to The Business…
Bank of Japan's Monetary Policy Meeting Minutes
Minutes of the Bank of Japan's Monetary Policy Meeting on 11 and 12 September 2003, released 16 October. Members agreed that economic activity still continued to be virtually flat as a whole, although signs of improvement had been observed in such areas…