Articles by Takashi Nakamichi

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  BOJ Seen Seeking to Place a Floor Under Long-Term Rates

  September 30, 2016 09:12 a.m.

  The Bank of Japan disclosed a new bond-buying policy Friday that suggested it wanted to keep a floor under long-term interest rates, underscoring its recent shift away from easing at all costs.

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  Bank of Japan Tries Another Way to Generate Inflation

  September 26, 2016 06:10 a.m.

  The Bank of Japan’s policy shift last week is an acknowledgment that it can’t sway consumer expectations with words. The bank concluded that Japanese consumers generally decide where prices will go based on what they see, not what they are told.

  • Heard on the Street: Japanese Banks—New Policy, Same Old Pain
  • BOJ Fires in Two Directions at Once (Sept. 21)

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  Bank of Japan Charts New Course With Bond-Rate Target

  September 21, 2016 12:49 p.m.

  Japan’s central bank plunged into virtually uncharted monetary-policy waters, introducing a target for something economists once argued was impossible to control: 10-year interest rates.

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  5 Things the Bank of Japan Could Do

  September 20, 2016 09:55 p.m.

  Debate is heating up at the Bank of Japan over whether it should ease further and, if so, how. Here are five things the Bank of Japan might consider doing at its two-day policy meeting concluding Wednesday.

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  Bank of Japan Readies Its Next Market Jolt

  September 20, 2016 05:52 a.m.

  The Bank of Japan may emerge from this week’s meeting with a plan to push a key interest rate further below zero. But it also is exploring less-splashy steps, notably changes in how it buys government bonds.

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  Japan’s Central Bank Splits Over Easing Program

  September 15, 2016 10:31 p.m.

  Some on the BOJ’s board think its extensive bond buying needs to be made more flexible, adding uncertainty to a radical experiment in monetary stimulus.

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  Bank of Japan’s Kuroda Sees the Other Side of Negative Rates

  September 5, 2016 05:58 a.m.

  Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda acknowledged the downsides of his negative-interest-rate policy, suggesting caution about further reductions.

  • Heard on the Street: Bank of Japan’s New Unease With Negative Rates

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  Japanese Puzzle: More Jobs Haven’t Helped Spending

  August 30, 2016 03:05 a.m.

  Japanese household spending fell again in July despite continued labor-market improvement, underlining conflicting signs in Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s effort to generate sustained growth.

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  Bank of Japan Likely to Take Bold Easing Action, Abe Adviser Says

  August 18, 2016 09:10 p.m.

  Etsuro Honda said the central bank’s September policy review would support further stimulus to defeat deflation.

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  Japan Hit by Double Whammy in Fed Waiting Game

  August 18, 2016 06:27 a.m.

  Japan again is running to the unwelcome combination of a strong yen and weak stock prices, driven partly by a lack of certainty about the timing of the next U.S. interest-rate increase.

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  Yen Largely Brushes Off Officials’ Comments

  August 3, 2016 10:59 p.m.

  Investors largely ignored jawboning by Japanese currency officials aimed at stemming the yen’s rise, suggesting that Tokyo is losing its influence on the market.

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  Modest Move Signals Possible Retreat at Bank of Japan

  July 29, 2016 08:55 a.m.

  The Bank of Japan may have begun to retreat from its “whatever it takes” policy stance, shifting pressure to the government to use fiscal spending and structural changes to help revive the economy.

  • Has the BOJ Lost Its Mojo?
  • Bank of Japan Takes Modest Easing Action
  • Why BOJ Dipped Into Bag of Small Tricks
  • Off the Charts: Markets React to BOJ

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  Bank of Japan Takes Modest Action

  July 29, 2016 02:23 a.m.

  The BOJ said it would expand only its buying of exchange-traded funds, a move that disappointed investors and indicated it may have reached the limits of monetary policy.

  • Japan Stocks Recover
  • Yen Surges, Leads Asian Currencies Higher
  • Off the Charts: Markets React
  • 5 Takeaways From the BOJ’s Decision
  • Heard on the Street: Why Bank of Japan Dipped Into Bag of Small Tricks

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  Japan Considers Issuing 50-Year Debt for First Time

  July 27, 2016 07:04 a.m.

  Japan is considering issuing 50-year bonds for the first time—the latest sign that ultralow interest rates around the globe are encouraging superlong debt.

  • Japan Looks to Join the ‘Ultralong’ Club

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  Bank of Japan Under Pressure to Join In Abe’s Stimulus

  July 24, 2016 11:52 a.m.

  As the Bank of Japan meets next week, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government will be finalizing one of the biggest spending packages since he took office more than 3 1/2 years ago, vowing to revitalize the economy.

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  Abe Adviser Calls for Combined BOJ Action, Fiscal Stimulus

  July 14, 2016 07:51 a.m.

  Japan should unleash a combination of fresh fiscal and monetary stimulus in the coming weeks to re-energize its efforts to end deflation, Etsuro Honda said.

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  Bernanke Says Bank of Japan Still has Tools for Further Easing

  July 12, 2016 06:20 a.m.

  Former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke rejected the notion that the Bank of Japan is short of ammunition when he met with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Tuesday.

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  Weak Japanese Inflation Raises Chances of BOJ Action

  June 30, 2016 11:13 p.m.

  Weak inflation and lukewarm business sentiment are raising expectations that the Bank of Japan will have to act again soon.

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  ‘Brexit’ Creates Crisis for Japan’s Recovery Efforts

  June 26, 2016 11:17 a.m.

  The U.K. vote to leave the European Union sent the yen soaring as investors poured money into currencies that are seen as stable stores of value in times of turmoil. That has sapped Japan’s efforts to bolster its economy through measures that rely heavily on cheapening the currency to support corporate profits.

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  G-7 Warns Against Disorderly Currency Moves, Vows to Provide Liquidity

  June 24, 2016 11:33 a.m.

  The Group of Seven leading industrialized nations warned against sharp, disorderly exchange-rate movements and vowed to ensure “adequate liquidity” to markets as the U.K.’s decision to leave the EU jolted stocks.