Japanese investors bought record $41 billion of overseas bonds in week
Japanese investors went on a record shopping spree in global debt markets last week as the yen strengthened and their hunt for yield intensified. Net buying soared to ¥4.24 trillion ($41 billion), surpassing the previous high of ¥2.55 trillion set in July 2016, according to ...
Shift to cleaner power sparks landmark green bond sale in Japan
In the gusty northeast, a power company is looking to fund offshore wind projects with a landmark sale of green bonds that seeks to muscle in on the growing pool of money available for environmentally friendly investments. Tohoku Electric Power Co. plans to price what ...
Moody's downgrades Renault to 'junk' status, capping disastrous year without Ghosn
Renault SA had its credit rating cut to junk by Moody's Investors Service after the French carmaker posted its first annual loss in a decade and indicated operating margins are set to shrink. Moody's lowered Renault's long-term debt rating one step to Ba1, a level ...
A new type of bond could help Japan's utilities cut emissions
Japanese power producers have been emitting more carbon dioxide since the 2011 nuclear disaster led to an increased reliance on fossil fuels, but a new kind of bond could help them reverse that trend. So-called transition bonds can pay for not-so-green companies to move toward ...
Increase in environmentally friendly debt may limit slowdown of corporate bond sales in Japan
Japan's record corporate bond issuance will likely slow down, but a boom in environmentally friendly debt could limit the downside. Companies have sold ¥13 trillion worth of bonds this business year, which ends March 31, already the most ever with three months still remaining in ...
Struggling regional banks in Japan buying riskier debt to survive
Struggling to revive profits as low yields persist, a handful of troubled regional banks are wading deeper into riskier credit such as near-junk rated overseas bonds, according to a Bloomberg survey. Weaker regional lenders are fighting for survival as the government presses for consolidation in ...
Kyoto considers entering Japan's nascent local green bond market
The city of Kyoto is exploring a possible sale of debt to finance environmental, social and governance projects, in what may be the country's only such municipal bond after Tokyo, the mayor has said. The historic former capital, which has more than 1,600 temples, is ...
Global bond sell-off persuades some investors to buy the dip as U.S.-China talks whipsaw market
Recent losses in Treasuries, which crescendoed Thursday into one of the worst days since Donald Trump was elected president, look like a buying opportunity for many investors who have a grim view of the economy's prospects. And it appears some are pouncing, with traders cashing ...
Finance Minister Taro Aso indicated a new openness to introducing 50-year government bonds, days after the country's central bank chief suggested such a move could be helpful. "This is one topic of our considerations," Aso told reporters Friday in Tokyo when asked about the potential ...
Tepco may become first Japanese utility to issue green bonds
Tokyo Electric Power Co. Holdings Inc. could become the first Japanese utility to issue green bonds. The company is considering raising funds via its new Tepco Renewable Power Inc. unit, established this month to take over its renewable energy business, according to spokesman Takao Takagi. ...
Negative yields will punish insurer profits, ex-Bank of Japan official says
Miyako Suda, who opposed the Bank of Japan's ultraloose monetary policy as a member of its Policy Board, has a warning for the nation's life insurers as bond yields sink ever lower. This prolonged period of ultralow rates will pressure profits as sovereign debt matures ...
SoftBank Group Corp. is assembling a rescue financing plan for WeWork that may value the office-sharing company below $8 billion, according to people familiar with the discussions. The new figure is a fraction of the $47 billion valuation the startup commanded as recently as January. ...
