Japanese and South Korean investors plow cash into structured products
Yield-starved Japanese investors are taking out the cash stashed under the futon and plowing it into potentially risky securities. Faced with domestic bond yields below zero and a rally in global equities that only recently had some wobbles, domestic retail investors drove sales of bonds ...
Japan's volatile year in business: negative rates, Brexit and Trump
For investors in Japan's markets this year, it's been a case of one shock after the next in a pattern that might have prepared them well for the era of Donald Trump and his reputation for the unexpected. The yen, Topix and the government bond ...
World's biggest pension fund gains ¥2.4 trillion as stocks rally
The world's biggest pension fund posted its first profit in four quarters as stocks rebounded, providing some respite for the Japanese state money manager after critics lambasted it for taking on too much risk. The Government Pension Investment Fund returned 1.8 percent, or ¥2.4 trillion ...
Could Japan's bond bubble get Trumped?
Bond market vigilantes are keen to test the Bank of Japan's latest moves to keep yields low as U.S. rates rise.
Japanese fund managers slightly increased exposure to equities in their model portfolios in September and trimmed their bond holdings after the Federal Reserve refrained from hiking interest rates, underpinning demand for riskier assets, a Reuters survey showed. The survey of five Japan-based fund managers conducted ...
BOJ's bid to control yields likely to spur demand for company debt
The Bank of Japan's decision to explicitly control sovereign bond yields will probably cap interest rates, bolstering demand for corporate debt offering extra premiums, according to analysts. The BOJ added what it calls "yield curve control" to its stimulus mix Wednesday and said it will ...
The Bank of Japan shifts the focus of its monetary stimulus to controlling the shape of yields across different maturities.
'Helicopter money' talk takes flight as Bank of Japan runs out of runway
The BOJ's review of its monetary stimulus program revived expectations it could adopt some form of "helicopter money," printing money for government spending to spur inflation.
Fitch cuts outlook on government debt in wake of tax hike delay
Fitch Ratings on Monday slashed its outlook on Japanese government bonds to negative from stable, citing a lack of specific steps to achieve the country's fiscal reform goal following another delay in the consumption tax hike. "The outlook revision primarily reflects Fitch's decreased confidence in ...
BOJ may reach limit to bond purchases in a year, former deputy governor says
Former Bank of Japan Deputy Gov. Kazumasa Iwata says the central bank will run up against the limits of bond purchases by the middle of next year, making the negative interest rate the BOJ's key tool for monetary policy. Iwata, who was on the central ...
Japanese investors binge on debt abroad amid negative yields at home
Japanese investors are scooping up bonds overseas to flee negative yields at home, driving a global debt-market rally. Money managers purchased a net ¥4.45 trillion of debt abroad from Feb. 12 to March 4, the biggest three-week outflow since the third quarter of 2010, based ...
JR West to issue unprecedented 40-year bonds to capitalize on negative rate
West Japan Railway Co. announces unprecedented 40-year bonds to leverage the cheaper funding brought about by the BOJ’s recent move.
