Japan
Fukui vows to fight deflation as credit eased
Bank of Japan chief Toshihiko Fukui on Tuesday 21 January renewed his pledge to fight deflation with sustained credit easing while saying the risk of a high yen curtailing the economic recovery has not increased.
Japan raises view on economy
Japan raised its assessment of its economy on Monday 19 January, saying strong exports are boosting output and beginning to filter through to consumption.
BOJ bought Y1.9100 trn shares from banks to 10 Jan
The Bank of Japan said on Wednesday it had bought a total of 1.9100 trillion yen ($17.98 billion) of shares held by Japanese banks by January 10 under its programme aimed at reducing the banks' exposure to stock market volatility.
BoJ may ease rules on asset-backed securities
Proposed rule changes to the Bank of Japan's asset-backed securities purchase will be on the agenda for discussion when the BoJ Policy Board convenes on Jan 19-20.
Bank of Japan semi-annual monetary report
Japan's economic activity remained virtually flat in the first half of fiscal 2003, the Bank of Japan's Semi-annual Report on Currency and Monetary Control showed.
Fukui to attend Basel BIS meeting
Toshihiko Fukui is due to attend a meeting of the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in Basel, Switzerland, the BOJ said on Friday 9 January.
Source says BOJ spent Y3 trln in intervention
Japan, worried that a strong yen could hurt an export-led recovery in its economy, spent about three trillion yen ($28.3 billion) in the first two days of this week to hold the currency down, market sources said on Wednesday 7 January.
Dollar continues slide against euro
The dollar hit a new record low against the euro on Tuesday in broad selling but held on just above a three-year low on the yen, helped by rumoured Japanese yen-selling intervention.
Japan's PM says economy seeing 'bright signs'
Japanese prime minister Junichiro Koizumi said on Monday at his New Year's news conference that the country was finally emerging from its prolonged slowdown.
Minutes of BoJ monetary policy meeting
The Bank of Japan monetary policy board met on November 20 and 21. The members agreed that the economy was starting to recover gradually and voted unanimously to maintain the current guideline for money market operations with the target range of "around…
BOJ opens branch office in Beijing
The Bank of Japan opened its Beijing office on Thursday18 December It will be headed by Yosuke Tsuyuguchi and is designed to strengthen relations between the BoJ and the People's Bank of China.
Bank of Japan Monthly Report, December 2003
The Bank of Japan published the English version of its December 2003 Monthly Report of Recent Economic and Financial Developments on 18 December. The BoJ said that it expects the Japanese economy to continue its export-led recovery at a slow pace. "Japan…
Nakahara on Japan's economy and monetary policy
In the speech 'Japan's Economy and Monetary Policy' released on 10 December Shin Nakahara of the Bank of Japan said currently, with the recovery trend looking steadily more certain, corporate executives seem to be more optimistic. For the Japanese…
Review of BoJ's asset-backed securities purchase
The Bank of Japan said on 16 December that it is reviewing the conditions for its purchase of asset-backed securities and will report the result at the next Monetary Policy Meeting.
BoJ leaves policy unchanged, sees slow recovery
The Bank of Japan left its monetary policy unchanged on Tuesday 16 December, reports AFP. It also released its December monthly report saying that it expects the Japanese economy to continue its export-led recovery at a slow pace. Most parts of the…
BoJ's Fukui on the current economic situation
In a speech on the current economic situation and the route to sustainable growth given on 8 December, Toshihiko Fukui of the Bank of Japan said Japan's economy is starting to recover gradually, after a period of generally flat economic activity that…
Japan's economy set to grow 1.5 percent
Japan's Cabinet Office said on Tuesday 9 December that the economy is expected to grow by 1.5 per cent in 2004, according to the Mainichi Daily News. It also predicted that moderate deflation will continue through 2004, forecasting the consumer price…
BoJ's Fukui on achieving sustainable growth
In a speech on 'Achieving Sustainable Growth' given on 28 November, Toshihiko Fukui of the Bank of Japan said the BoJ's framework for quantitative easing coupled with measures to strengthen the transmission mechanism of monetary policy will improve the…
OECD: Japan needs to fix its price problem
The OECD has urged continued reforms in Japan to allow a sustained recovery, according to a report by Pacific Business News. OECD economist Yutaka Imai called on the Japanese government to stimulate economic activity to stop prices from slipping.
BoJ to inject $9.1 billion to help stabilize mkt
The Bank of Japan is prepared to inject $9.1 billion into the financial system in an effort to stabilise markets, according to Associated Press. PM Junichiro Koizumi approved a decision on Saturday 29 November to purchase all of Ashikaga Financial Group…
Bank of Japan Monthly Report, November 2003
The Bank of Japan published the English version of its November 2003 Monthly Report of Recent Economic and Financial Developments on 26 November. The Report said the economy was recovering - effectively upgrading its assessment for the third straight…
BOJ falls into red for first time in over 30 years
The Bank of Japan said on Thursday 27 November that it made a loss in the April-September period for the first time in 30 years, according to Reuters. The main reason for the loss was the rise in long-term yields which resulted in a 793.8 billion yen…
Bank of Japan's Monetary Policy Meeting Minutes
Minutes of the Bank of Japan's Monetary Policy Meeting on 9 and 10 October 2003, released 27 November. Consumer prices were basically projected to continue falling gradually although it was possible that the year-on-year decline might stop temporarily…
Bank of Japan Monetary Policy Meeting, 21 Nov
At the Bank of Japan's Monetary Policy Meeting held on 21 November, the bank decided, by unanimous vote, to set unchanged guidelines for money market operations for the intermeeting period.