Japan Week Ahead: July Data to Show Mixed Start to Q3 after BOJ Deputy Governor Himino Downplays Weak Q2 GDP Growth, Keeps September Rate Hike Talk Alive
–July Factory Output to Show Pullback After Recent Gains, Heat Wave Props Up Retail Sales, Sluggish Household Spending Continues amid High Costs By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Financial markets have largely priced in a follow-up interest rate hike by the Bank of Japan in September, with only a three-month interval instead of an earlier expectation […]
Japan Week Ahead: Markets Seek Hints from BOJ Deputy Governor Himino’s Speech on Board Concerns About Upside Inflation Risks amid Weak Q2 GDP Growth
By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Market participants are looking for any clues to whether the Bank of Japan board is getting closer to raising interest rates further in September, instead of waiting until October, when the board updates its economic projections and risk analysis in the quarterly Outlook Report. BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda clearly indicated […]
Japan Week Ahead: Inflationary Pressures Growing amid Weak Yen, Measured BOJ Tightening Pace, Prompting Some Economists to Point to an Early September Rate Hike
By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Upward pressures on both producer and consumer prices are mounting in Japan when only about five years ago policymakers dreamt about seeing the annual inflation rate overshoot the Bank of Japan’s 2% target from around zero. When BOJ board members left the policy interest rate unchanged at 1% at the […]
Japan Week Ahead: BOJ on Hold Amid Mideast Conflict, US Trade Uncertainty, While Pointing to Need to Raise Policy Rate Further to Neutral Level
–July Tokyo CPI Seen Ticking Up Closer to BOJ’s 2% Target as Iran War Has Boosted Prices, Import Costs High on Yen’s Slide to Nearly Four-Decade Low–June Factory Output to Pose 3rd Straight Rise amid Global Demand for Computer Chips, Non-Ferrous Metals, Easing Impact of US Tariffs on Autos By Max Sato (MaceNews) – The […]
Japan Week Ahead: Resilient Economy Faces Inflationary Pressures, Structural Fragility as Mideast Conflict Rages on, Weak Yen Keeps Imports Expensive
–June Exports Forecast to Post 10th Straight Y/Y Rise, CPI Seen Up Slightly but Still Below BOJ’s 2% Inflation Target By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japan’s economy has shown resilience in the face of protectionist U.S. trade policy and the lingering Mideast conflict. Exports have weathered the drag from stiff Trump tariffs on autos and […]
Japan Week Ahead: Markets Continue to Expect BOJ Rate Hike Toward Yearend after Tankan Business Survey, Branch Managers Report Points to Resilient Economy amid Mideast Uncertainty
–May Machinery Orders Set for Pullback after April Surge but Strong Demand for Computers, AI-Linked Equipment Seen Intact By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Bank of Japan policymakers have received evidence this month that the domestic economy has been resilient, overcoming high fuel costs and material shortages triggered by the Middle East conflict amid the global […]
Japan Week Ahead: BOJ June Quarter Tankan Business Survey to Show Mideast Conflict Dented Confidence Slightly, Pushed Up Costs for Many Sectors
–Hot Weather, Rising Stock Markets Seen Lifting Retail Sales in May, Job Creation Continues, Factory Output to Extend Monthly Gain on Export Demand By Max Sato (MaceNews) – The tentative U.S.-Iran peace agreement has led crude oil prices lower to pre-war levels, calming jitters among policymakers and investors, but Japanese households and businesses will still […]
Update: Japan Week Ahead: Markets Look for Signs of Follow-Up BOJ Move in A Few Months After Milestone Rate Hike in June, Warning about Inflation
–Updates to Show New Date for Monthly Economic Report –June Tokyo CPI Inflation Seen Accelerating on Rising Costs for Plastics, Other Goods amid Mideast Materials Supply Squeeze but Still Below 2% BOJ Target By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Financial markets are expected to be volatile in the coming week after Iran announced on the weekend […]
Japan Week Ahead: BOJ Looks Set for 5th Rate Hike in Current Cycle Started in March 2024 as Previously Cautious Governor Points to Upside Inflation Risks
–May Trade to Show Solid Exports, April Machinery Orders Seen Flat with Slight Dip, CPI Inflation Tame on Energy Subsidies, Free High School Education By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Here are the key Japanese events for the coming week. It appears to be a done deal for the Bank of Japan’s sometimes divided policy board. […]
Update: Bank of Japan Board Widely Expected to Raise Policy Rate by 25 Basis Points to 1% at June 15-16 Meeting in Rare Absence of Governor
––Governor Ueda, 74, Hospitalized for Medical Treatment, Working Remotely but Will Not Vote Next Week–Board to Set Guideline for JGB purchases for Fiscal 2027; Focus on whether It Will Maintain Current Pace of Tapering by ¥200 billion a Quarter By Max Sato (MaceNews) – The Bank of Japan’s board is widely expected to decide to […]