Japan Economics Weekly A quick look at housing and land prices in Japan Land prices continue to drop in Japan despite having already been falling for over twenty years. During that period, house prices have risen on occasion, most recently in 2010. But in each case the... 9th July 2012 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly Recovery stuttering to a halt The most recent data on Japan have painted a dismal picture of economic conditions in May. Industrial production has fallen sharply as auto makers cut output in anticipation of the end of the auto... 29th June 2012 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly The allure of Japanese government bonds Not for the first time, international investors have increased their exposure to Japan’s government and their share of outstanding government securities has grown. However, they have mainly bought... 25th June 2012 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly A closer look at Japanese bank lending in Asia As the IMF noted in its recent Article IV consultation, Japanese banks have been expanding abroad, particularly in emerging Asia. They have not been alone in doing so, but unlike banks from other... 18th June 2012 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly Economy set to slow sharply after Q1 growth spurt The strong rebound in Japanese GDP in Q1 is likely to mark the high point for growth this year. The recovery is heavily reliant on government support and it looks increasingly unlikely that the... 11th June 2012 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly How exposed are Japanese banks to the periphery? With the crisis in the euro-zone escalating further, in this Weekly we use Bank for International Settlement figures to assess how exposed Japanese banks are to the euro-zone periphery economies. 4th June 2012 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly The fire on the other side of the river Japan’s policymakers have said that the euro-zone crisis is not a fire on the other side of the river – the implication being that Japan will not be able to escape indefinitely the debt problems that... 28th May 2012 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly Power shortages will bite hard this summer The government’s power saving plan for the summer confirms Japan will face acute power shortages. The hardest hit regions will experience shortages in excess of 15% compared to 2010 levels, and... 21st May 2012 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly Safe haven demand to lift yen further In the last week, the yen has again broken through 80 against the dollar, taking the currency to its strongest level since February. The yen has strengthened despite the recent increase in the ceiling... 14th May 2012 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly A bumpy ride for growth We have little doubt that the Japanese economy returned to growth in Q1 but it is looking increasingly likely that growth will slow sharply again in Q2 and we wouldn’t completely rule out a renewed... 7th May 2012 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly Japan mustn’t miss chance for trade liberalisation Aggressive monetary easing alone will not be enough to boost prices and activity in the real economy: structural changes to the supply side of the economy are also necessary. Reducing regulation... 30th April 2012 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly A return to growth in 2012 In this Weekly we present our updated GDP forecasts. The Japanese economy looks set to return to growth in Q1 after contracting in four of the last five quarters. We expect the economy will continue... 23rd April 2012 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly Making sense of the monetary aggregates As if the Bank of Japan were not facing enough political pressure to ease policy further, some commentators have cited the recent contraction in the monetary base as additional evidence that a lot... 16th April 2012 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly Over-employment at Japanese firms on the way out The employment component of the Tankan provided some welcome good news in an otherwise lacklustre survey. The employment index fell to its lowest level in four years, indicating that Japanese firms... 9th April 2012 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly Raising the consumption tax: a small step forward The government has finally succeeded in submitting a bill to parliament to increase the consumption tax. This is has been a long time coming and is an important step forward in putting the public... 2nd April 2012 · 1 min read
Japan Economics Weekly A brief look at Japan’s small business surveys Analysis of conditions for small and medium sized enterprises tends to be overlooked in favour of conditions for large manufacturers despite the importance of the sector to the economy. In this Weekly... 26th March 2012 · 1 min read
