Jiji -- Sep 22
Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda defended the BOJ's yield curve control on Thursday, the first anniversary of the key item in the bank's ultraeasy monetary policy regime.
The yield curve control, designed to guide short-term interest rates to minus 0.1 pct and long-term rates to around zero pct, has had "positive effects on the economy," Kuroda told a news conference.
Earlier in the day, the BOJ decided by a vote of eight to one to leave its monetary policy intact, including the yield curve control, which involves massive Japanese government bond purchases.
Kuroda said the current policy helped fuel an increase in bank lending and economic growth.
Economists and market watchers say the policy has caused a sharp decrease in JGB trading, hurting the market's functioning. But Kuroda said no major problem has occurred.
News source: Jiji
Monkeys on the loose in Mie Prefecture
News On Japan - Oct 07
Dozens of monkeys roaming through a residential area of Kuwana City, Mie Prefecture, are caught on camera by a local resident.
How to enter Japan | Required documents and fast-track entry
japan-guide.com - Oct 07
In this quick video we will explain how to enter Japan after its reopening to international tourism on October 11, 2022. From the documents required to the fast-track entry process as well as information on masks, we hope this will help your trip be as smooth as possible.
Body in river near Tokyo confirmed as that of missing 7-yr-old girl
Kyodo - Oct 07
A body found recently in a river in Chiba Prefecture, near Tokyo, has been confirmed as that of a 7-year-old girl who went missing in late September, investigative sources said Thursday.
Yayoi Kusama pumpkin sculpture returns to Naoshima Island
News On Japan - Oct 07
A pumpkin art piece by contemporary artist Yayoi Kusama that was destroyed by a typhoon in August 2021 is back on display on Naoshima Island, Kagawa Prefecture.
Nomura is teaching Japan high school kids how to invest
Bloomberg - Oct 07
In the world’s third biggest economy, public skepticism toward financial investing has become so entrenched that investment bank Nomura Holdings Inc. is teaching economic basics in high schools to win over the next generation.
Japan targets farm export gains to blunt weak yen’s pain
borneobulletin - Oct 07
When Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida vowed this week to wring more gains from the weak yen, which has become instead a source of economic pain, he was pinning his hopes on the likes of Soichi Yoshimura, 33, and his strawberry farm north of Tokyo.
Toyota restarts output of first EV after resolving safety issues
Nikkei - Oct 07
Toyota Motor said it would restart production of its first electric vehicle, the bZ4X, on Thursday after fixing potential safety problems that had halted sales of the new battery-powered model for more than three months.
North Korea fires missiles again as U.S. carrier redeployed
Kyodo - Oct 06
North Korea fired two ballistic missiles early Thursday from near Pyongyang toward the Sea of Japan, the sixth round of launches since late September, after a U.S. aircraft carrier was redeployed to the waters, the Japanese government and the South Korean military said.