Japan to join currency wars as exports slump
News On Japan via telegraph.co.uk -- Oct 23
Japan is poised to join the world's "currency wars" as it battles a triple crisis of crashing exports, recession and a suffocatingly-strong yen.
The country's exports plunged 10.3 percent in September from a year ago, dimming hopes of rapid recovery in the Far East. Exports to Europe crashed 21 percent. Shipments to China fell 14 percent as the Diaoyu-Senkaku islands dispute led to a slump in car sales.
Honda, Mazda, and Nissan all saw sales plunge near 30 percent as Chinese consumers boycotted Japanese brands.
The yen has risen 30 percent against China's yuan, 65 percent against the euro, and 80 percent against Sterling since 2008. Tokyo is itching to fight back.
Yen strength is Japan's curse. It rises on safe-haven flows during global downturns, choking the economy. This stems from Japan's bitter-sweet role as top creditor with $3 trillion of net assets.
Pressure is growing for quantitative easing on a much greater scale to break out of the deflationary trap.
今年4月から9月までの貿易収支は、中国などへの輸出が落ち込んだことから、半期ベースで過去最大の赤字額となりました。
Source: telegraph.co.uk, ANNnewsCH
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