Tag: Japan

Tame inflation keeps pressure on Bank of Japan to maintain stimulus

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Japan‘s headline inflation slowed in March from February, highlighting the central bank’s struggle to hit its 2 percent price growth target after five years of heavy stimulus, keeping it under pressure to maintain an ultra-easy monetary policy.

The core consumer price index, which includes oil products but excludes volatile fresh food prices, rose 0.9 percent year-on-year in March, matching economists’ median estimate, Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications data showed on Friday.

It followed a 1.0 percent gain in February.

Analysts expect core consumer inflation to peak later this year as upward price pressure from energy and food is likely to moderate, and will raise more hurdles in the Bank of Japan‘s path to exiting easy monetary policy.

“We expect inflation excluding fresh food to average 1 percent in the current fiscal year, below the median forecast among BOJ board members of 1.4 percent,” said Marcel Thieliant, seniorJapan economist at Capital Economics.

“If we are right, the bank will have to reduce its inflation forecasts yet again over the coming months, underlining that policy tightening is a long way off.”

Sources familiar with the central bank’s thinking said it is likely to maintain the view that inflation will reach its 2 percent target next fiscal year, and will stay near that level the following year, when it issues new forecasts next week.

Those projections could increase the prospects of the BOJ deciding to debate whittling down its massive stimulus next fiscal year.

But a complete shift to monetary tightening is unlikely as BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda has said inflation must exceed a stable 2 percent before the bank can trim its huge holdings of government bonds and exchange-traded funds.

Friday’s data showed the so-called core-core inflation index, which excludes fresh food and energy prices and is similar to the core index used in the United States, rose 0.5 percent in the year to March – flat from the previous month.

Japan‘s economy, the world’s third largest, expanded at an annualised 1.6 percent in October-December, posting its longest continuous expansion since the 1980s bubble economy, on the back of solid capital spending.

Japan‘s unemployment rate hovers near a 25-year low at 2.5 percent, which should encourage inflation by putting upward pressure on wages.

However, consumer prices have risen more slowly than the BOJ had hoped, as companies hold off on raising prices and wages, citing uncertainty over the economic outlook.

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

US, Japan plan new talks on ‘fair and reciprocal’ trade deal

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The US and Japan said Wednesday they’ve agreed to start talks to develop what President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minster Shinzo Abe described as a new “free, fair and reciprocal” trade deal between the two countries following two days of talks.

But the leaders said they had failed to reach a deal that would exempt Japan from new US steel and aluminum tariffs, as Abe had wanted.

“If we can come to an arrangement on a new deal, that would certainly be something we would discuss,” Trump said during a joint press conference at his private Mar-a-Lago club. But he said the current trade deficit between the two countries is too high for him to offer an exemption now.

Most other key US allies — among them Australia, Canada, the European Union and Mexico — have already been granted exemptions to Trump’s protectionist measures on steel and aluminum.

The US trade deficit with Japan last year was $56.1 billion, according to the US Department of Commerce.

Trump said he was working to reduce that imbalance and pushing to remove barriers to US exports.

“We’re committed to pursuing a bilateral trading relationship that benefits both of our great countries,” he said.

Japan has previously voiced reluctance to a bilateral trade deal with the US.

Trump also made clear that he has little interest in rejoining negotiations over the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal unless the terms are dramatically altered.

“While Japan and South Korea would like us to go back into TPP, I don’t like the deal for the United States,” Trump tweeted Tuesday, following a dinner with Abe and their respective wives at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort. “Too many contingencies and no way to get out if it doesn’t work. Bilateral deals are far more efficient, profitable and better for OUR workers.”

Trump pulled the US out of TPP days after his inauguration but recently said he might be open to rejoining.

During Abe’s two-day visit, Trump appeared to be seeking to reassure him of the pair’s close alliance as the president prepares for a historic summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Trump and Abe spent Wednesday morning golfing at one of Trump’s nearby courses in their latest show of “golf diplomacy,” and had an intimate dinner on Tuesday evening with their wives.

The Trump-Abe summit has played out amid growing tensions between the two countries over North Korea and trade. Japan has raised concerns that the US might press Kim only on long-range missiles that could hit the mainland United States — and not on the short- and medium-range missiles that pose an immediate threat to Japan — as they discuss North Korea’s nuclear weapons program.

Abe on Tuesday praised Trump for his courage in agreeing to meet with Kim and suggested he and Trump had already come to terms on several issues.

Speaking through a translator during one of their meetings, Abe said that he and Trump had had “very in-depth discussions” on both North Korea and economic issues and that “on those two points” they had “successfully forged a mutual understanding.”

The two did not reveal what those agreements were, but Abe had been expected to urge Trump to exempt Japan from the tariffs and press him on the missile issue.

Larry Kudlow, the director of the National Economic Council, had said earlier Tuesday that issuing Japan the waiver was “on the table,” but he declined to say what Trump would ask for in return.

The talks came amid news that CIA Director Mike Pompeo had recently traveled in secret to North Korea to meet with Kim ahead of a US-North Korea summit planned in the next two months. Two officials confirmed the trip to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the visit publicly.

Trump on Wednesday confirmed the visit in a tweet, saying “a good relationship was formed” heading into their anticipated summit.

“Denuclearization will be a great thing for World, but also for North Korea!” Trump wrote.

On Tuesday, Trump said North and South Korea are negotiating an end to hostilities before next week’s meeting between Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in. The meeting will be the third inter-Korean summit since the Koreas’ 1945 division.

“They do have my blessing to discuss the end of the war,” Trump said.

Trump said five locations for the summit are under consideration, but he wouldn’t list them.

Trump and first lady Melania Trump are set to host the Japanese delegations for dinner Wednesday evening.

Abe did, however, secured a commitment from Trump to raise with Kim the issue of Japanese citizens abducted by North Korea.

Trump said it was clear that Abe cares about the issue deeply.

Pyongyang has acknowledging abducting 13 Japanese, while Tokyo maintains North Korea abducted 17. Five have been returned to Japan. North Korea says eight others died and denies the remaining four entered its territory. Japan has demanded further investigation.

The US itself is pushing for the release of three Americans.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Mahindra to partner with Japanese firm for amphibious aircraft

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Mahindra Defence, a unit of Mahindra  & Mahindra signed a memorandum of understanding with Japan’s ShinMaywa Industries Limited, for the manufacture and supply of parts for the US 2 amphibious aircraft.

Under the MOU, Mahindra Defence would look to set up maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) operations in the aerospace sector. The unit would also look to absorb relevant technology.

The partnership with ShinMaywa will help Indian Defence with a supply of heavy seaplanes, and a coastal area would be chosen to set up operations,  PS Shukla, President of Mahindra Defence, told CNBC TV 18.

Pilot training, and the repair and overhaul of aircraft would also take place in the country, he added.

Shukla further said the finer details of the partnership would depend on the government’s nod for the planes, and added that he number of aircraft purchased would determine the level of indigenisation in the seaplanes.

Mahindra manufactures radar systems, communications systems, and identification friend or foe systsems (IFF) – a system that determines if an aircraft is friendly or not – among other products such as armoured trucks and jeeps.

India has been looking to buy between 12 and 18 of these planes, to fulfill its need for an aircraft capable of conduction search-and-rescue missions.

The plane is suited for `benign’ missions such as search-and-rescue (SAR), casualty evacuation (CASEVAC), humanitarian relief and disaster management, and `constabulary’ missions such as surveillance, domain awareness (MDA) missions of the Indian Navy.

The aircraft are expected to be based out of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and the 4500 km range of the plane would enable them to support both civilian and military vessels in the Indian Ocean region.

The deal,  if concluded, would strengthen India-Japan relations,  and would send a message to China, which has been asserting its dominance in the South China sea.

Worth about $ 1.65 billion, it would also represent Japan’s largest overseas defense deal since it lifted its decades-long self-imposed ban on defense exports in 2014.

Both countries are inching forward towards a final deal for the planes.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

India, Japan and US to engage in talks, ahead of Trump-Abe meet

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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New Delhi will host the strategically important trilateral dialogue between India, Japan and the US this week ahead of the summit between US President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at Mar-a-Lago later this month, the US State Department has said.

The Trump administration has sent two of its senior diplomats from the State Department — Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, Alice Wells, and Acting Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, Susan Thornton, – to co-lead the American delegation for the trilateral dialogue.

The crucial dialogue between the three leading democratic powers of the Indo-Pacific region on Wednesday comes a fortnight ahead of the Trump-Abe summit at Mar-a-Lago, Trump’s Florida resort.

During the two-day summit on April 17 and 18, the two leaders will reaffirm the US-Japan alliance as a cornerstone of peace, stability, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region, the White House said today.

While Wells has just returned from Pakistan, Thorton completed her trip to Malaysia before heading to New Delhi where she attended the US-ASEAN Dialogue to engage on regional security and economic issues.

On April 6, Wells will participate in the India-US Forum, hosted by the Ananta Centre and the Ministry of External Affairs. During her visit, she will also meet with senior Indian government officials to discuss regional and global issues and representatives from the private sector, the State Department said.

The India-Japan-US trilateral was launched in December 2011 when Hillary Clinton was the Secretary of State. For the first several rounds the trilateral was held at the director or assistant secretary level.

It was elevated to ministerial level in 2015. The inaugural ministerial trilateral was held on September 29, 2015, in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly Session. It was hosted by the then US Secretary of State John Kerry. The External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida represented their respective countries.

The last ministerial dialogue was also held in New York in September 2017.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Japan Inc’s inflation expectations stall in March, BOJ survey shows

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Corporate Japan expects to see only minimal inflation in a year and barely any change in the next three to five years, a central bank survey showed on Tuesday, highlighting yet again the difficulty the Bank of Japan faces in reaching its elusive 2 percent inflation target.

Companies surveyed by the Bank of Japan expect consumer prices to have risen 0.8 percent a year from now, unchanged from their projection three months ago.

Firms also expect consumer prices to have risen by an annual 1.1 percent three years from now and 1.1 percent five years ahead, also unchanged from three months ago,

The BOJ deployed a massive stimulus programme in 2013 in the hope of shocking consumers out of their deflationary mindset and boosting corporate and household inflation expectations.

After failing to make much headway on price growth, the BOJ revamped its policy framework in 2016 to one better suited to a long-term battle against deflation, although its results have been modest.

Japan`s economy has expanded for eight quarters, the longest continuous expansion since a 12-quarter stretch of growth between April-June 1986 and January-March 1989 around the height of Japan`s economic bubble.

But this record run of growth has been slow to translate into higher consumer prices.

The nationwide core consumer price index, which includes oil products but excludes volatile fresh food costs, rose 1.0 percent in February from a year earlier, matching the median estimate, data last week showed.

However, a narrower measure of consumer prices that excludes fresh food and energy rose an annual 0.5 percent in February, highlighting the snail`s pace of underlying inflation.

The tankan surveys will be among factors for the BOJ board to scrutinise when it meets for a two-day rate review ending on April 27.

The meeting will be the first to include the BOJ`s two new deputy governors. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe appointed Masazumi Wakatabe, an academic known as vocal advocate of aggressive monetary stimulus, to one of the posts.

Masayoshi Amamiya, a career central banker, was appointed two the second deputy governor post.

Governor Haruhiko Kuroda was reappointed, which suggests the BOJ will maintain policy continuity.

However, there is some uncertainty over whether Wakatabe`s appointment will shift the policy board toward additional easing given the difficulty in meeting the central bank`s price target.

The inflation expectations come after Monday`s BOJ tankan survey of business confidence showed big manufacturers` sentiment worsened for the first time in two years on worries about a rising yen and trade friction with the United States.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

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Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Sushma Swaraj, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe discuss bilateral ties

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj today met Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and the two leaders discussed ways to strengthen the bilateral ties. Swaraj, who was here on a three-day visit, also conveyed the greetings of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Abe.

“EAM @SushmaSwaraj called on Japanese Prime Minister @AbeShinzo today morning in Tokyo. EAM conveyed the greetings of PM @narendramodi to PM Abe,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said in a tweet.

During the meeting, Abe told Swaraj that the traditional friendship between the India and Japan was characterised by “heart-to-heart” bonds and blessed with a huge potential for growth.

“PM Abe said that India-Japan traditional friendship is characterised by heart-to-heart bonds and blessed with a huge potential for growth,” Kumar tweeted.

Swaraj, who was on her first visit to Japan in the capacity of the External Affairs Minister, had reached Tokyo on Wednesday to attend the ninth India-Japan Strategic Dialogue.

She met her counterpart Taro Kano yesterday and the two leaders reviewed the entire gamut of bilateral ties.

Describing the meeting as “very productive”, Swaraj said her trip had laid a sound foundation for Modi’s visit to Japan for the next bilateral Annual Summit later this year.

Hours after meeting Abe, Swaraj departed from Tokyo, concluding her first official trip to Japan.

“Sayonara! EAM @SushmaSwaraj departs from Tokyo after her first official visit to Japan for the 9th #IndiaJapan Strategic Dialogue,” Indian Embassy in Tokyo tweeted.

Earlier yesterday, Swaraj met Chairman of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party Policy Research Council & former Japanese Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida.

Swaraj also addressed a gathering of Indian diaspora at the Vivekanand Cultural Centre in Tokyo.

According to official figures, Japanese FDI in India during 2016-17 was $4.7 billion, an increase of 80% over the last year.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

India to have 478 million internet users by June 2018, says report

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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The number of mobile internet users in India is likely to reach 478 million (47.8 crore) by June 2018, a report jointly published by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and KANTAR-IMRB said.

“The number of mobile internet users increased by 17.22 per cent from December 2016 to reach 456 million users by December 2017,” said the report titled “Mobile Internet in India 2017.”

The report attributed the popularity of mobile internet in the country to its affordability. Widespread use of smartphones, tablets and computers have led to an increase in the number of people getting access to the internet.

“Expenditure on voice has been steadily decreasing from 2013; and with the popularity of VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) and video chatting, the expenditure on voice services has decreased drastically in recent times,” the report said.

“This, in turn, means that there is a rise in proportion of data expenditure in comparison to voice (services) expenditures for most users,” it added.

The report estimated that urban mobile internet users rose 18.64 percent year-on-year, to 291 million, while the number of rural users rose 15.03 percent, to 187 million in December 2017.

These numbers are expected to rise in the near future with the rise in mobile payments on platforms such as PayTM,  and growth of online marketplaces such as Amazon and FlipKart.

The study, however, predicts a slowdown in internet penetration in urban India where penetration is at 59 percent already. Growth is expected in rural areas where mobile internet penetration is at 18 percent.

The difference in internet penetration mirrors other economies such as China, where internet users are divided by large regional discrepancies.

For example, while more than 75 percent of Beijing has access to internet connectivity, only 30 percent of the population of the South-Western province of Yunnan has internet access.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow

Asian shares mixed as tech losses weigh in muted trading

KV Prasad Jun 13, 2022, 06:35 AM IST (Published)

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Trading in Asian stock markets was mixed on Thursday as tech-sector losses on Wall Street weighed on investor sentiment. Trading in some markets was muted ahead of the Easter weekend.

KEEPING SCORE: Japan’s Nikkei 225 rose 0.4 percent to 21,121.17 after a sharp drop in the yen made shares cheaper for foreign buyers. South Korea’s Kospi added 0.2 percent to 2,424.49. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index slipped 0.3 percent to 29,939.72 while the Shanghai Composite in mainland China gained 0.1 percent to 3,123.67. Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 dropped 0.3 percent to 5,770.70. Shares rose in Thailand and Singapore but fell in Indonesia.

TECH PRESSURE: Amazon, Netflix and other consumer-focused tech companies suffered losses that outweighed gains in other sectors. Investors continue to wrestle with the possible implications of negative headlines swirling around tech sector names. Amazon slid on a report that President Donald Trump was musing about going after the e-tailer with antitrust or competition laws while Tesla tumbled after Moody’s downgraded the electric car maker’s credit rating.

MARKET TAKE: “U.S. tech stocks remained a drag amid the scrutiny over a multitude of issues and it should be of little surprise to see the decline’s extent with a lack of positive news to boost sentiment,” said Jingyi Pan of IG Markets in Singapore. “For Asian markets, however, this gloom may have worn out a little as we anticipate a potentially lackluster session today.”

KOREAS SUMMIT: Tensions over the Korean peninsula eased on signs of progress in the standoff over the North’s nuclear program. The two Koreas began high-level talks Thursday to prepare for a summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean President Moon Jae-in. This follows a meeting earlier this week between Kim and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing. A summit between Kim and President Donald Trump is also expected by the end of May, though nothing has been confirmed.

WALL STREET: The benchmark S&P 500 index dipped 0.3 percent to close at 2,605. The Dow Jones industrial average fell less than 0.1 percent to 23,848.42. The Nasdaq composite index slid 0.8 percent to 6,949.23.

ENERGY: Benchmark U.S. crude rose 19 cents to $64.57 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract lost 87 cents, or 1.3 percent, to settle at $64.38 per barrel on Wednesday. Brent crude, used to price international oils, rose 14 cents to $68.90 per barrel in London.

CURRENCIES: The dollar eased after making a big jump against the yen to its highest level in three weeks. It was trading at 106.58 yen from 106.84 yen late Wednesday. The euro rose to $1.2328 from $1.2308.

Elon Musk forms several ‘X Holdings’ companies to fund potential Twitter buyout

3 Mins Read

Thursday’s filing dispelled some doubts, though Musk still has work to do. He and his advisers will spend the coming days vetting potential investors for the equity portion of his offer, according to people familiar with the matter

KV Prasad Journo follow politics, process in Parliament and US Congress. Former Congressional APSA-Fulbright Fellow