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☆ Investors are eyeing China's neighbors as the recovery from 'zero-Covid' slows
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Jihye Lee | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesChina's lackluster economic recovery since emerging from strict "zero-Covid" lockdowns has caused weaker sentiment toward the country, prompting investors to look for alternative options — like its near neighbors. Higher targets for JapanForeign investors have undoubtedly been key in driving the Japanese market, maintaining the highest levels the Nikkei has seen since 1990. During the same period last year, foreign investors had sold a net 1.73 trillion yen approximately. Wall Street banks including Morgan Stanley and Societe Generale are among those that are optimistic on Japanese stocks, holding "overweight" positions. Upside for Korea tech stocksSouth Korea is another market closely watched as concerns over China's recovery linger.

Persons: Goldman, Andrew Tilton, Berkshire Hathaway's Warren Buffett, India's, Goldman Sachs, Tilton, Morgan Stanley, ROE, Mike Wilson, we've, Price, Goldman's Tilton, Rhee Chang, Nomura, Chloe Andrieu, Pranjul Bhandari, Bhandari Organizations: Bloomberg, Getty, Asia, Pacific, Japan Foreign, Nikkei, Japan's Ministry of Finance, Societe Generale, Equity, U.S, UBS Global Wealth, U.S ., UBS, The Bank of, CNBC, Citi, AFP, Afp, Korea Financial Investment Association, South Korean, Fitch, Ben Advisors Locations: Macau, China, Japan, South Korea, India, Goldman Sachs, Berkshire, South, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Wall, Korea, Asia, The Bank of Korea, Fuyang, China's, Anhui, Indonesia

☆ Column: Emissions watchers wary of Japan's power saving pleas
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-12 | by ( Gavin Maguire | Thomson Reuters | Gavin Maguire Is The Global Energy Transition Columnist. He Was Previously Asia Commodities | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

LITTLETON, Colorado, June 11 (Reuters) - The Japanese government has called for homes and businesses to curb power use this summer, but emissions trackers are still bracing for a sharp uptick in Japan's power pollution as higher temperatures trigger increased air conditioner use. Recent weather forecasts call for Japan's temperatures to average nearly 4% above normal in July and 3% higher than normal in August, according to Refinitiv. Japan seasonal coal use and coal emissionsThose same months are when Japan's use of coal for electricity generation also typically peaks, along with power sector emissions, data from think tank Ember shows. COAL IMPORTS LEAD POWER EMISSIONSThis year, those usage and pollution patterns look set to be repeated, regardless of the government's recent pleas to curb power use. Power production trends show Japan's energy usage tends to have two distinct periods of strength when the country's weather is at its most severe - during winter and summer.

Persons: Japan's, Gavin Maguire, Tom Hogue Organizations: Japan's Ministry, Economy, Trade, Industry, Reuters, Thomson Locations: LITTLETON , Colorado, Japan, Kpler, Ukraine

[1/2] Ukrainian artillery fires towards the frontline during heavy fighting amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, near Bakhmut, Ukraine, April 13, 2023. Following Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's visit to Japan during the Hiroshima G7 leaders summit last month, Kishida agreed to donate jeeps and trucks. Japan is one of dozens of friends and allies that Washington is asking to help arm Ukraine as it wrestles with stretched military supply chains. Reuters contacted 22 explosives makers listed on the Japan Explosives Industry Association's website. The only one that said it made industrial TNT was Chugoku Kayaku, an Hiroshima-based firm that supplies Japan's military.

Persons: Kai Pfaffenbach, Lloyd Austin, Washington, Fumio Kishida, Volodymyr Zelenskiy's, Kishida, Tsuneo Watanabe, Austin, Akihisa Nagashima, Tim Kelly, Nobuhiro Kubo, Yukiko Toyoda, Kaori Kaneko, Idrees Ali, David Crawshaw Organizations: REUTERS, TNT, Russian, Reuters, Panasonic, Defense, U.S, Japan's Ministry of Trade, Industry, Technology, Logistics Agency, U.S . State Department, Ukraine, TNT Washington, Japan Explosives Industry, Liberal Democratic Party, Thomson Locations: Ukraine, Bakhmut, TOKYO, United States, Japan, Washington, U.S, Tokyo, China, Taiwan, East Asia, Kyiv, Hiroshima, Sasakawa, South Korea, Chugoku, Japan's, Russia, Seoul

The sources spoke on condition of anonymity because of fears for their safety in a city under Russian occupation. But there is concern in the international community that the six-reactor nuclear plant, Europe's largest, could be caught up in fighting, particularly as military analysts expect Ukraine to try to push Russian forces back in Zaporizhzhia region. In April, Japan contributed 2 million euros to the U.N.'s watchdog to help its effort to secure the safety of Zaporizhzhia power plant. Kotin said Russian forces would have to retreat if it looked like that road was going to be cut off. He added that he believed Russian forces had already been conducting drills at the plant to practise pulling out.

☆ Micron poised to get $1.5 bln from Japan for next-gen chips - Bloomberg News
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

May 17 (Reuters) - Micron Technology Inc (MU.O) is poised to get about 200 billion yen ($1.48 billion) in financial incentives from Japan to help it make next-generation memory chips in the country, Bloomberg News reported on Wednesday, citing people familiar with the matter. Micron will use the funding to install advanced, extreme ultraviolet (EUV) chipmaking equipment from ASML Holding NV (ASML.AS) at its Hiroshima facility to fabricate DRAM chips, the report said. DRAM chips are memory chips that lose the memory when the power is off. Micron is also expected to contribute its own capital to the Hiroshima expansion with some support from the city, Bloomberg added. Micron, ASML and Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment.

☆ Mitsubishi Heavy expects record defence orders as Japan pours money into military
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, May 10 (Reuters) - Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (7011.T) on Wednesday said it expects to book record defence equipment orders this business year as Japan embarks on its biggest military expansion since World War Two. His company said it expects defence orders to jump by around a half to as much as 850 billion yen ($6.29 billion) in the first year of Japan's five-year $318 billion military build up which began in April. The maker of missiles, tanks, submarines and other defence equipment is Japan's biggest defence contractor, with military work accounting for around a tenth of overall revenue. Many other military contractors in Japan, however, have been hesitant to invest in defence businesses as they often represent a much smaller share of sales. Mitsubishi Heavy, which makes products ranging from air conditioners to nuclear reactors expects overall operating profit for the business year to increase by a half to 300 billion yen.

☆ Japan's Honda, GS Yuasa to invest $3 bln for battery development, build plant -Nikkei
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, April 27 (Reuters) - Japanese automaker Honda Motor Co Ltd (7267.T) and battery maker GS Yuasa Corp (6674.T) will invest over 400 billion yen ($2.99 billion) and team up to produce batteries for electric vehicles (EVs) and homes, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Thursday. The companies will start by building a new plant in Japan, targeting a production capacity of at least 20 gigawatt hours (GWh), the Nikkei added, without citing sources. Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry would provide a subsidy of about 150 billion yen, the newspaper added, without specifying whether that would be only for building the factory. GS Yuasa could not be immediately reached outside of regular office hours. ($1 = 133.9700 yen)Reporting by Daniel Leussink, Maki Shiraki and Elaine Lies; Editing by Kirsten DonovanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

The country nationalised its copper sector in 1971, provoking international outrage, particularly in the United States. President Gabriel Boric's lithium "nationalisation" is a more benign version, using an even earlier copper model. THE COPPER MODEL - GOOD AND BADIf President Boric's lithium policy is an echo of past copper policy, the comparison is with the "Chileanisation" programme of the Eduardo Frei Montalva administration in the late 1960s. Even the neo-liberals of the Augusto Pinochet regime kept the national jewel in the crown as they opened the rest of the country's' copper sector up to the private sector. It is now Codelco that is tasked with taking control of the country's lithium sector.

☆ Japan awards Mitsubishi Heavy $2.8 bln missile contracts
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, April 11 (Reuters) - Japan has awarded its largest defence equipment maker Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (7011.T) contracts worth 378 billion yen ($2.84 billion) to develop and build a new missile force aimed at deterring China from using military force in East Asia. The new missile force, which is expected to be capable of striking ships and land targets more than 1,000 km from Japan, is at the center of that plan. To bolster its defences before it can deploy those home-built missiles, Japan in February also said it will bulk order Raytheon Technologies Corp (RTX.N) Tomahawk cruise missiles from the United States. It has not yet said how many it will buy, but local media reports said it will be as many as 500. ($1 = 133.0800 yen)Reporting by Tim Kelly; Editing by Jan HarveyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Credit Suisse fell 8% in Europe and First Republic tumbled 30%. Banking troubles revived memories of the 2008 financial crisis, when dozens of institutions failed or were bailed out with billions of dollars of government and central bank money. Earlier this week, the franc plunged the most against the dollar in one day since 2015, when the Swiss central bank loosened its currency peg. Japan's Ministry of Finance, Financial Services Agency and Bank of Japan officials met on Friday evening to discuss financial markets. Masato Kanda, vice finance minister for international affairs, told reporters after the trilateral meeting that the government, the central bank and the banking watchdog would coordinate to ensure the stability of the financial system.

☆ Relief rally on bank rescue lifts riskier currencies; dollar slips
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Rae Wee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The Aussie jumped 0.76% to $0.6708 in Asia trade on Friday, while the kiwi rose 0.69% to $0.6239. The move followed Credit Suisse's (CSGN.S) announcement earlier on Thursday that it would borrow up to $54 billion from the Swiss National Bank, after the central bank threw a financial lifeline to the embattled Swiss lender. Earlier in the week, the Swissie had plunged the most against the dollar in a day since 2015. It was last 0.56% higher at 133.01 per dollar, on track to rise more than 1% for the week. Reporting by Rae Wee; Editing by Bradley Perrett and Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Japan, Canada in talks over collaboration in battery metals supply chain
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, March 14 (Reuters) - Japan and Canada are discussing collaboration on building strong supply chains for battery metals, Japan's industry minister, Yasutoshi Nishimura, said on Tuesday. A public-private mission led by Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and including 16 companies that work with batteries visited Canada last week for talks on building sustainable and resilient supply chains, he said. "Canada has an abundance of battery metals and good market access to the United States," Nishimura told a news conference. "Canada is one of the most important countries for Japan when it comes to strengthening our supply chains of storage battery metals," he said. He declined to give details of the talks but said he would take various opportunities, including an upcoming G7 ministerial meeting, to reinforce cooperation with Canada.

☆ How many Chinese spy balloons did we miss and when did they start flying above the U.S.?
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Dan De Luce | Ken Dilanian | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

There are currently five known Chinese balloon flights into U.S. territory, including two during the Biden administration and three during Donald Trump's presidency, according to the Biden administration's public statement. The congressman said he expected more Chinese balloon flights to be identified. Other countries are also examining whether Chinese balloon flights over their territory went undetected. British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace said his government will review the country's security in light of the Chinese balloon flight over the U.S.Australia was not aware of any Chinese surveillance balloons flying over its territory, an Australian official said. It remains unclear if new information could indicate that those balloon sightings were in fact Chinese surveillance airships.

☆ Japanese investors turn net buyers of overseas bonds in January
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

According to data from Japan's Ministry of Finance, Japanese investors purchased a net 1.56 trillion yen ($11.79 billion)worth of foreign bonds in January, marking their biggest buying spree since September 2021. Prashant Newnaha, senior Asia-Pacific rates strategist at TD Securities, said Japanese buyers were likely buying foreign bonds on an unhedged basis. "Buying FX-hedged foreign bonds makes little sense given Japanese government bonds are a more attractive option," he said. The data showed that in the first week of February, Japanese investors bought 1.1 trillion yen worth of overseas bonds. Meanwhile, domestic investors also poured 1.67 trillion yen into foreign equities in January in a second straight month of net buying.

☆ China, Japan discuss concerns over disputed East China Sea islands
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BEIJING, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Chinese Foreign Minister Qin Gang and his Japanese counterpart Yoshimasa Hayashi discussed disputed islands in the East China Sea on Thursday, with both expressing concerns and Qin hoping Japan could stop "right-wing" provocations. The disputed East China Sea islets claimed by both China and Japan have long been a sticking point in bilateral relations. China calls the islands Diaoyu, while Japan calls them Senkaku. Hayashi said bilateral relations face "many challenges and concerns," adding that Japanese public opinion toward China is "extremely severe," Japan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. Hayashi also expressed "serious concerns" about the East China Sea, including China's activities around the islands, as well as its "increasingly active military activities near Japan".

☆ Japan's chip equipment makers in the dark about new China export restrictions
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

TOKYO, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Japanese makers of semiconductor manufacturing machinery and materials used to make chips said on Monday they had yet to hear from Japan's government about export restrictions that could directly or indirectly affect their business in China. Without knowing the details of any new restrictions it is impossible to know their impact, he said. Its statement followed a Bloomberg report that the United States had secured a deal with the Netherlands and Japan. Among them was Tokyo Electron Ltd (8035.T), Japan's biggest semiconductor manufacturing machinery maker. Shares of Japanese semiconductor equipment makers were mostly flat on Monday, with Tokyo Electron up 0.68% while Advantest Corp (6857.T) fell 0.32%.

☆ U.S. secures deal with Netherlands, Japan on China chip export limit- Bloomberg
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan addresses the daily press briefing at the White House in Washington, U.S. September 30, 2022. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File PhotoWASHINGTON, Jan 27 (Reuters) - The United States has secured a deal with the Netherlands and Japan to restrict exports of some advanced chip-making machinery to China in talks that concluded on Friday, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Officials from the Netherlands and Japan were in Washington discussing a wide range of issues in talks led by White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan. John Kirby, the White House national security spokesperson, earlier said the officials were talking about issues that are "important to all three of us." When asked about the Bloomberg report, the White House declined to comment beyond Kirby's earlier remarks.

☆ Exclusive: ValueAct calls for Seven & i to spin off 7-Eleven retail chain
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Svea Herbst-Bayliss | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

ValueAct argued a tax-free spin-off of 7-Eleven could be completed through a listing on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in roughly a year. But it also noted the board may receive a proposal to buy the whole company during its ongoing strategic review. "We understand that Seven & i can combine 7-Eleven, Inc. and Seven-Eleven Japan and execute a tax-free spin-off to launch a global champion 7-Eleven listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange about 12 months from now," the letter said. Seven & i is currently conducting a strategic review and has pledged to announce its decisions by early March. Ever since first making its investment in Seven & i known in 2021, ValueAct has said other investors have reached out to the firm about its references to a possible spin off of 7-Eleven.

☆ Japan considers green transition bonds issuance for next fiscal year
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-11 | by ( Tetsushi Kajimoto | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Japan plans to issue 1.6 trillion yen of such bonds in the fiscal year that ends April 2024, with an eye on those with maturity of 10 years and 20 years. "It will be like hand-to-mouth operations if we rely too much on short term government bonds," Saito said. The average duration of government bond issuance estimated for next fiscal year is eight years and one month, six months shorter that the current fiscal year. "We will appropriately conduct debt management, which centres on ascertaining market needs and allocate issuance by duration." Saito also said interest rates remain low but the current situation will not last indefinitely, as seen in spikes in overseas bond market yields.

☆ Japan says it scrambled jets to monitor Chinese aircraft carrier operations
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-02 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, Jan 2 (Reuters) - Japan said on Monday it scrambled jet fighters and dispatched aircraft and warships over the past two weeks to keep tabs on China's Liaoning aircraft carrier and five warships that conducted naval manoeuvres and flight operations in the Pacific. Japan monitored the operations after the Chinese naval group, which included missile destroyers, sailed between the main Okinawa island and Miyakojima island into the Western Pacific from the East China Sea on Dec. 16, Japan's Ministry of Defence said in a press release. Before returning the same way on Sunday, the Chinese carrier conducted more than 300 take-offs and landings of fixed-wing aircraft and helicopters, added the ministry, which did not report any incursions into Japanese territorial waters or skies. Japan also reported that it had detected flights by a Chinese WZ-7 drone close to Miyakojima on Sunday and again on Monday, the first time it has spotted the high-altitude drone in the area. Reporting by Tim Kelly; Editing by Robert BirselOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Japan to deploy missile defence unit in Yonaguni, near Taiwan - Jiji
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

TOKYO, Dec 27 (Reuters) - Japan's Ministry of Defence will deploy a surface-to-air missile defence unit in Yonaguni Island, the country's westernmost island, near Taiwan, Jiji news reported on Tuesday. The instalment of missile troops is part of a plan to expand a Ground Self-Defense Force camp on the island, part of Okinawa prefecture, to reinforce defence of Japan's southwestern islands, Jiji quoted ministry spokesperson Takeshi Aoki as saying. Earlier this month, Japan unveiled its biggest military build-up since World War Two with a $320 billion plan that would buy missiles capable of striking China as regional tensions and Russia's Ukraine invasion stoke war fears. read moreReporting by Kantaro Komiya Editing by Chang-Ran KimOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Japan may build 2 huge warships to counter the growing missile threat from North Korea
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-15 | by ( Benjamin Brimelow | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

That has led Japan to examine its missile defense, which relies on specially designed warships. The launches have forced Japan to examine its unique ballistic-missile defense system, which relies heavily on specially equipped warships to intercept incoming missiles. US Missile Defense Agency/Heather CavaliereJapan began developing its current BMD system in 2004. US Navy/MCS3 Quinton A. LeeThe Aegis-equipped BMD ships are the most important part of Japan's BMD system. US Navy/MCS Seaman Aleksandr FreutelThere are advantages to relying on maritime-based platforms for missile defense.

☆ Japan, Netherlands to join U.S. in China chip curbs - Bloomberg News
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Dec 12 (Reuters) - Japan and the Netherlands have agreed in principle to join the United States in tightening controls over the export of advanced chip-making machinery to China, Bloomberg News reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter. In October, the Biden administration published a series of curbs aimed at stopping the export of chip-making technology and certain chips made through U.S. equipment anywhere in the world to China. The new curbs may be announced in the coming weeks, it added. Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry as well as Netherlands' foreign affairs ministry did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests for comment. Reporting by Yuvraj Malik in Bengaluru; Editing by Devika SyamnathOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

TOKYO/LONDON, Dec 9 (Reuters) - Japan, Britain and Italy are merging their next-generation jet fighter projects in a ground-breaking partnership spanning Europe and Asia that is Japan's first major industrial defence collaboration beyond the United States since World War Two. Amid what it sees as deteriorating regional security, Japan this month will announce a military build up plan that is expected to double defence spending to about 2% of gross domestic product over five years. Britain also want Japan to improve how it provides security clearances to contractors who will work on the aircraft, sources with knowledge of the discussion told Reuters. The United States, which has pledged to defend all three countries through its membership of NATO and a separate security pact with Japan, also welcomed the joint Europe-Japan agreement. "The United States supports Japan's security and defence cooperation with likeminded allies and partners, including with the United Kingdom and Italy," the U.S. Department of Defense said in a joint statement with Japan's Ministry of Defense.

☆ Gold will hit $3,000 an ounce and the dollar will surge 50% against the Japanese yen. Here are the 10 outrageous 2023 predictions from one European bank
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Carla Mozée | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Gold surging to $3,000 an ounce is part of Saxo Bank's list of 10 Outrageous Predictions for 2023. The Danish bank's annual list also foresees Japan setting a floor of 200 yen to temporarily halt a surging US dollar. Sign up for our newsletter to get the inside scoop on what traders are talking about — delivered daily to your inbox. Saxo predicted 2023 as the year the market discovers that inflation will continue to burn hot for the foreseeable future, driving gold to $3,000 an ounce. "Under-owned gold rips higher on the sea-change reset in forward real interest rate implications of this new backdrop, it said.

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