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☆ Masatoshi Ito, Who Built Retailer That Took Over 7-Eleven, Dies at 98
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Chieko Tsuneoka | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The company built by Masatoshi Ito, known today as Seven & i Holdings, controls the global 7-Eleven business. TOKYO—Masatoshi Ito’s retail career started in 1946 at a 71-square-foot family shop in Tokyo that sold knitted underwear in the bombed-out Japanese capital. By the time he died at 98 years old on March 10, the company built by Mr. Ito controlled the global 7-Eleven convenience-store business and was one of Japan’s biggest retailers.

FILE PHOTO: Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida poses during his news conference in Tokyo, Japan on February 24, 2023. Stanislav Kogiku/Pool via REUTERSThe news comes as households grapple with intensifying cost-of-living pressures amid elevated inflation for items such as energy and food, hitting consumption and smaller businesses. Thanks to the energy subsidies, a leading indicator of Japan’s consumer prices rose at a slower pace in February, data showed on Friday. However, an index stripping away the effect of fuel hit a fresh three-decade high in a sign of broadening inflationary pressures. The Japanese government will consider asking major utilities to reduce price increases for households in light of recent declines in energy prices, Kyodo news agency reported on Friday.

☆ Bank of Japan Governor Nominee Predicts Inflation Rate Will Fall Soon
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Megumi Fujikawa | Peter Landers | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Kazuo Ueda was nominated by the government this month as the next governor of the Bank of Japan. TOKYO—Japan’s core inflation rate hit a four-decade high of 4.2% in January, but the nominee to lead the Bank of Japan said he expected it to fall and didn’t think an interest-rate increase was needed. Core consumer prices—which Japan defines as all prices excluding fresh food—rose at the fastest pace since September 1981 but came in slightly below the consensus forecast. It was the 10th consecutive month that inflation exceeded the Bank of Japan’s 2% target.

☆ Toyota accepts union demands for biggest wage hike in two decades
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

As one of Japan’s biggest employers, Toyota (TM) has long served as a bellwether of the spring labor talks, which are in full swing at major companies. Toyota and the union federation representing 357,000 Toyota group workers said the base pay rise was the biggest in two decades, though they both declined to provide the percentage increase. Successful talksToyota said its wage increase would also apply to part-time workers and senior contract workers. Takaaki Sakagami, deputy secretary-general of the Federation of All Toyota Workers’ Union, said the union was pleased it had been able to reach a deal with the company quickly. Video game maker Nintendo (NTDOF) said earlier this month that it planned to lift workers’ base pay by 10%, despite trimming its full-year profit forecast.

☆ North Korea Launches ICBM, Raising Tensions in Region
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Jiyoung Sohn | Dasl Yoon | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

SEOUL—North Korea fired an intercontinental ballistic missile, escalating tensions in the region as the U.S. and South Korea prepare for joint military exercises. The missile was fired eastward Saturday shortly before 5:30 p.m. local time from the Sunan area in the outskirts of North Korea’s capital city of Pyongyang. It was in the air for a little more than an hour, reaching an altitude of more than 3,500 miles. It traveled a distance of about 560 miles before landing in the sea about 155 miles west of Japan’s northernmost island of Hokkaido, in the country’s Exclusive Economic Zone, according to South Korean and Japanese defense officials.

☆ Kazuo Ueda Is Nominated to Lead the Bank of Japan
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Megumi Fujikawa | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Kazuo Ueda served on the Bank of Japan’s policy board from 1998 to 2005. TOKYO—The Japanese government on Tuesday nominated Kazuo Ueda to become the next governor of the Bank of Japan , the first leadership change in a decade after Haruhiko Kuroda ‘s aggressive monetary easing. Mr. Ueda is a former University of Tokyo professor of economics and served on the BOJ’s policy board from 1998 to 2005.

☆ Kazuo Ueda nominated to lead Japan's central bank in possible move away from ultra-easy policy
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Hong Kong CNN —The Japanese government has nominated Kazuo Ueda to lead its central bank, in a surprise move that could pave the way for the country to wind down its ultra-loose monetary policy. Accommodative is a term used to describe monetary policy that adjusts to adverse market conditions and usually involves keeping interest rates low to spur growth and employment. As part of that program, the central bank targeted some short-term interest rates at an ultra-dovish minus 0.1% and aimed for 10-year government bond yields around 0%. But as prices rose and interest rates elsewhere went up, pressure has grown on the BOJ to wind down YCC. But Kuroda later dismissed a near-term exit from his ultra-loose monetary policy.

☆ Bank of Japan’s new governor starts on back foot
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Pete Sweeney | Thomson Reuters | Asia Economics Editor Pete Sweeney Joined Reuters Breakingviews In Hong Kong In September Previously He Served As Reuters' Chief Correspondent For China Economy | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

HONG KONG, Feb 14 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Academic Kazuo Ueda faces a rocky time as the new governor of the Bank of Japan (8301.T). He is stepping down just as his signature yield curve control (YCC) policy is becoming increasingly unsustainable as domestic inflation rises. The Nikkei news service reported that officials had approached Deputy Governor Masayoshi Amamiya and were rebuffed. It seems likely Ueda will have to modify or abandon YCC given how much damage it is doing to the bond market and the BOJ’s balance sheet. Follow @petesweeneypro on TwitterloadingCONTEXT NEWSJapan's government on Feb. 14 named academic Kazuo Ueda as its pick to become the next governor of the country’s central bank.

☆ Dollar eases as inflation in focus, BOJ governor nomination awaited
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Ankur Banerjee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The dollar index , which measures the U.S. currency against six major rivals, eased 0.019% to 103.17, having slipped 0.34% overnight. NEW BOJ GOVInvestors are also awaiting the formal nomination for the next Bank of Japan governor. Sources told Reuters that Japan's government was likely to appoint academic Kazuo Ueda as the next BOJ governor. Ueda, a former BOJ policy board member and an academic at Kyoritsu Women's University, is considered an expert on monetary policy but had not even been seen as a dark horse candidate for the top job. The Japanese yen strengthened 0.23% to 132.12 per dollar, having slipped 0.7% in the previous session.

☆ Japan’s next central bank chief may rue promotion
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Pete Sweeney | Thomson Reuters | Asia Economics Editor Pete Sweeney Joined Reuters Breakingviews In Hong Kong In September Previously He Served As Reuters' Chief Correspondent For China Economy | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

In fact, it has spent an average of 1.3 trillion yen per trading day since the band widened: nearly 50 trillion yen in total, per Refinitiv data, and still counting. The central bank already owns over half of Japan’s sovereign bonds and is sure to suffer large losses when their prices fall, which they eventually must. The central bank chief must also work to put the country’s vast stack of inert money back to work. Kuroda effectively put the central bank at the service of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s “Abenomics” stimulus programme. Fumio Kishida, the current leader, is having popularity problems and will want the central bank to support his aggressive agenda, which includes hiking defence spending, promoting innovative startups and redistributing wealth.

Shares in Sushiro’s owner, Food & Life Companies Co Ltd, fell 4.8% last Tuesday, as the video circulated. In a statement last Wednesday, Food & Life Companies said it had filed a police report against the customer, alleging damages. Two other leading conveyor belt sushi chains, Kura Sushi and Hamazushi, told CNN that they had experienced similar disruptions. In recent weeks, some Japanese social media users have questioned the role of conveyor belt sushi restaurants as consumers demand more attention to cleanliness. Sushiro, the Japanese sushi chain, is replacing real sushi with photographs of sushi on its conveyor belts.

Last month, he called on companies to hike pay at a level above inflation, with some already heeding the call. Last month, Japan recorded its biggest drop in earnings, once inflation is taken into account, in nearly a decade. A changing job marketExperts say Japan’s wages have also suffered because it lags in another metric: its productivity rate. Hideya Tokiyoshi, a teacher in Japan, told CNN he had barely seen his salary go up over the last 30 years. “If some of the biggest companies in Japan raise wages, many other firms will follow,” if only to stay competitive, said Yamaguchi.

☆ U.S. freestyle skier dies in avalanche in Japan
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Chantal Da Silva | Chantal Da Silva Is A Breaking News Editor For Nbc News Digital Based In London. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

A U.S. freestyle skier has died after being caught in an avalanche in Japan on Sunday, his family confirmed. Weather authorities had issued an avalanche warning for the area after days of heavy snowfall. Police officers board a gondola heading to the site of an avalanche in the village of Otari, Japan on Sunday. "Such a bright light lost," wrote Marielle Thompson, a Canadian Olympic freestyle skier. “Wish we had more time to ski these past few years,” Joss Christensen, a U.S. freestyle skier from Park City, Utah, wrote.

☆ Japan launches whale meat vending machines to promote sales
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-28 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

“As a result, many consumers who want to eat it cannot find or buy whale meat. Kashiwabara says she is aware of the whaling controversy but that whale meat brings back her childhood memories of eating it at family dinners and school lunches. But whale meat is part of Japanese food culture and we can respect the lives of whales by appreciating their meat,” Kashiwabara said. Still, conservative governing lawmakers staunchly support commercial whaling and consumption of the meat as part of Japan’s cultural tradition. Conservationists say whale meat is no longer part of the daily diet in Japan, especially for younger generations.

☆ Japan's leader prioritizes arms buildup, reversing low birthrate
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Kishida’s government in December adopted key security and defense reforms, including a counterstrike capability that breaks from the country’s exclusively self-defense-only postwar principle. Japan says the current deployment of missile interceptors is insufficient to defend it from rapid weapons advancement in China and North Korea. Kishida said it’s a “drastic turnaround” of Japan’s security policy, but still remains within the limitations of its pacifist constitution and international law. This month, Kishida took a five-nation tour, including Washington, to explain Japan’s new defense plan and further develop defense ties with its ally the United States. Japan is the world’s third-biggest economy but living costs are high and wage increases have been slow.

☆ Bank of Japan’s Kuroda defends central bank’s yield curve control measures
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailBank of Japan’s Kuroda defends central bank’s yield curve control measuresSpeaking during a panel session the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda discusses the central bank's decision to widen the trading band in its yield curve control program last month.

☆ Dollar rises on safe haven bids; yen regains footing
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( Rae Wee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

FILE PHOTO: A U.S. hundred dollar bill and Japanese 10,000 yen notes are seen in this photo illustration in Tokyo, February 28, 2013. The fresh wave of risk aversion - compounded by news of job cuts by tech giants Microsoft and Amazon - also kept the dollar in bid. The euro was last 0.39% lower at 138.58 yen, while sterling fell 0.23% to 158.27 yen, as markets continued to test the resolve of the BOJ’s ultra-dovish stance. “While there’s still high expectations for a policy shift ... I think that will keep the yen pretty elevated in the near term.”Elsewhere, the kiwi fell 0.31% to $0.6425.

☆ Japanese Stocks Fall Ahead of BOJ Meeting
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( Dave Sebastian | Megumi Fujikawa | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The Bank of Japan’s monetary-policy board is due to meet this week. Stocks in mainland China rose to start the week, while Japanese markets fell as the country’s long-term bond yields again breached a cap set by the Bank of Japan . The Nikkei 225 closed down 297.20 points, or 1.1%, to end the day at 25822.32. The Japanese yen weakened slightly against the U.S. dollar, hitting 128.69 by late afternoon trading in Hong Kong.

☆ Suspect in Shinzo Abe assassination to face murder charge, lawyer says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( The Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

TOKYO — Japanese prosecutors are expected to formally charge the suspect in the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe with murder on Friday, his lawyer said. Later that month, Yamagami was sent to an Osaka detention center and given a five-month mental evaluation, which ended Tuesday. One of his lawyers, Masaaki Furukawa, told The Associated Press on Thursday that he expects prosecutors to charge Yamagami with murder and gun control law violations. Police say Yamagami told them that he killed Abe, one of Japan’s most influential and divisive politicians, because of Abe’s apparent links to a religious group that he hated. Current Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s popularity has plunged over his handling of the church controversy and for insisting on holding a rare, controversial state funeral for Abe.

☆ Final farewell: From Sidney Poitier to Pope Emeritus Benedict a look back at the influential figures who died in 2022
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-01 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +55 min

Other world leaders who died in 2022 include former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev, who died in August. The final days of 2022 saw the loss of some exceptionally notable figures, including Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI. Here is a roll call of some influential figures who died in 2022 (cause of death cited for younger people, if available):___JANUARY___Dan Reeves, 77. A Cuban-born artist whose radiant color palette and geometric paintings were overlooked for decades before the art world took notice. A prolific character actor best known for playing villains and tough guys in “The Manchurian Candidate,” “Ocean’s Eleven” and other films.

☆ Japan’s Yield Curve Control Is a Tool Worth Keeping
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-22 | by ( Jon Sindreu | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Like a heavy power drill, the Bank of Japan’s policy of capping bond yields seems to be difficult to use without cracking the wall. Unlike many of the tools tested by central banks since 2008, though, it may be worth keeping in the box. Haruhiko Kuroda has so far stood apart from other central bankers in refusing to unwind extra-loose monetary policy. Under his “yield curve control,” or YCC, the 10-year Japanese government-debt yield remains pegged at 0%. Yields have since jumped close to the new ceiling.

☆ As regional threats rise, Japan eases defense-only strategy
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

With China, North Korea and Russia directly to its west and north, Japan “faces the severest and most complicated national security environment since the end of the war,” the strategy said, referring to World War II. Japan’s defense buildup has long been considered a sensitive issue at home and in the region, especially for Asian victims of Japanese wartime atrocities. Rapid advancement of missiles have become “realistic threats” in the region, making interception by existing missile defense systems more difficult, the strategy said. North Korea fired more than 30 ballistic missiles this year, including one that flew over Japan. Japan needs standoff, or long-range missiles, to strike back and prevent further attacks “as an unavoidable minimum defensive measure,” the document stated.

☆ Japan wins plaudits for World Cup shocks and fans cleaning up in stadiums
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( John Sinnott | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —Japan bids the World Cup farewell after its World Cup last-16 penalty shootout defeat by Croatia on Monday, but the team and its fans left lasting memories that won the Asian nation plenty of plaudits in Qatar and across the watching world. After the win over Germany, Japan’s players cleaned up their dressing room, leaving it looking immaculate. Japan supporters celebrate the team's World Cup Group E win against Spain. Ozan Kose/AFP/Getty Images‘Good vibes’Before Monday’s last-16 match against Japan, Croatia midfielder Lovro Majer had paid tribute to what the Samurai Blue had done at this World Cup. “We beat Germany and Spain – both World Cup champions,” said Japan coach coach Hajime Moriyasu, according to Reuters, after Monday’s loss to Croatia.

☆ Croatia beats Japan on penalties to reach World Cup quarterfinals
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( Ben Church | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +28 min

CNN —Goalkeeper Dominik Livaković made himself a national hero as Croatia beat Japan on penalties 1-1 (3-1) to reach the World Cup quarterfinals. Marko Djurica/ReutersJapan’s heartbreakDespite its defeat, Japan can look back at an impressive World Cup campaign. They made history Thursday as the first all-female refereeing crew for a men's World Cup match. Mbappé was one of the leading stars of the team's World Cup triumph four years ago. He also became just the third goalkeeper to save three penalties in a single World Cup shootout.

☆ Japan court upholds ban on same-sex marriage but voices rights concern
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

TOKYO — A Tokyo court upheld a ban on same-sex marriage on Wednesday but said a lack of legal protection for same-sex families violated their human rights, a comment welcomed by plaintiffs as a partial victory for LGBTQ couples. Japan is the only nation in the Group of 7 that does not allow same-sex marriage, and its constitution defines marriage as based on the mutual consent of both sexes. Although Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s governing party has revealed no plans yet to review the matter or propose changes, several senior members support same-sex marriage. In Wednesday’s ruling, the Tokyo district court said the ban was constitutional, but added that the absence of a legal system to protect same-sex families infringed their human rights. The decision came a day after the U.S. Senate passed a same-sex marriage protection bill and Singapore lifted a ban on gay sex but limited the prospects for legalizing same-sex marriage.

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