Japan Economics Weekly Profit boost from weak yen helps sustain virtuous cycle As we had anticipated, the weak yen isn’t providing a big boost to Japan’s export volumes. Instead, its impact is mainly felt via higher yen revenue and costs. With firms having passed on the full... 20th October 2023 · 5 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly Above-trend growth won’t be sustained The savings rate bounced back in Q2 as consumption fell and remains above its pre-pandemic average, leaving scope for a renewed rise in spending over the coming quarters. And with inflation set to... 13th October 2023 · 6 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly Virtuous cycle continues as yen weakens The sudden strengthening of the yen after it breached 150 against the dollar earlier this week has triggered speculation that the Ministry of Finance sold foreign exchange reserves to support the yen... 6th October 2023 · 5 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly BoJ Board members starting to call for tighter policy The minutes of the Bank of Japan's July meeting showed a lively debate about the outlook for prices and monetary policy. While many Board members believe that the Bank will have to keep policy loose... 29th September 2023 · 6 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly Government benefitting from higher inflation for now We previously argued that political pressure is one reason to expect the Bank of Japan to tighten policy. However, we suspect the government's stance on inflation has become more ambiguous. While... 22nd September 2023 · 7 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly Bank of Japan will hike policy rate in January Following hawkish comments by BoJ Governor Ueda, we now expect the Bank to lift its policy rate for the first time in sixteen years in January. The Bank could call time on Yield Curve Control at the... 15th September 2023 · 6 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly FX intervention looking increasingly likely With the yen weakening to a one-year low against the dollar, the chances that the authorities will intervene to stem its slide have risen. That would probably have little success if interest rate... 8th September 2023 · 5 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly Economy flatlining in Q3, but recession unlikely Note: We’ll be discussing the China growth/stimulus question, the BOJ’s policy outlook, Indian food price inflation and more in our monthly Asia Drop-In on Thursday, 31 st August. Register here to... 31st August 2023 · 6 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly Case for policy rate hikes still not strong enough The inflation data released this week show that underlying inflation remains stubbornly high. However, with wages still not rising fast enough for the Bank of Japan's liking and the momentum of... 25th August 2023 · 7 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly Bank of Japan won’t rush to tighten policy With the economy seemingly running hot and underlying inflation still accelerating, the case for tighter monetary policy looks increasingly compelling. However, we still expect the Bank of Japan to... 18th August 2023 · 5 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly Recession now looking unlikely Wage growth has been strong in recent months which will make it easier for households to cope with high inflation. What’s more, the outlook for external demand has brightened as we no longer expect... 11th August 2023 · 8 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly BoJ in fighting retreat from yield control 10-year government bond yields have steadily risen since the BoJ effectively raised the yield ceiling from 0.5% to 1.0% last Friday and could test the new ceiling by year-end. If that happens, we... 4th August 2023 · 6 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly Nascent virtuous cycle raises risk of policy tightening Inflation continues to run well ahead of wage growth and we're sticking to our forecast that the resulting fall in real incomes will force consumers to tighten their belts over the coming months. With... 28th July 2023 · 7 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly Budget deficit will be larger than we had thought While the ratio of tax revenue to GDP last year was the highest it has been since the 1980s, growth in tax revenue has been weaker in recent months than we had anticipated despite strong growth in the... 21st July 2023 · 4 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly May wage data hints at virtuous wage-price cycle Regular pay growth was the strongest in May in almost three decades and suggests that we may have underestimated the influence the stellar result from this year’s annual spring wage negotiations will... 14th July 2023 · 6 mins read
Japan Economics Weekly Limited fallout from Chinese export curbs China’s curbs on exports of germanium and gallium probably won’t make much of a dent on Japan’s economy. There would be a much bigger impact if China were to restrict rare earth exports as well. But... 7th July 2023 · 5 mins read
