Japan

World economy 14th January 2014

Is deflation a trap? Revisiting the Japanese experience

LONDON | By Michael Gavin at Barclays | The recent decline of headline and core inflation in the US and Europe has intensified interest in the economics of deflation, particularly the perceived danger that Europe may be headed for a deflationary episode. Deflation is particularly unsettling for many policymakers and market participants because of the theoretical risk that it may render monetary policy ineffective, creating a ‘liquidity trap’ from which it may be very difficult to escape.

World economy 11th December 2013

The Japan macro trade: Watch Japanese investors in 2014

LONDON | By Jim McCormick, Anando Maitra and Sree Kochugovindan at Barclays | Nearly a year ago to the day, the LDP and its leader, Shinzo Abe, won a landslide victory in the Japanese elections. Since then, it has been an extraordinary twelve months for Japan. GDP growth is set to be the highest of all major economies, by a good margin. Inflation and inflation expectations are at the highest levels in some time. The equity market has surged 75% since the election, and the trade-weighted yen has fallen 30%.

In Europe 6th December 2013

EZ is doing even worse than Japan

SAO PAOLO | By Marcus Nunes | Mr Ambrose Evans-Pritchard explains “Mario Draghi said the ECB is studying what happened in Japan at the onset of its Lost Decade in the 1990s, insisting that the EZ is unlikely to go the same way.”

Markets 23rd September 2013

In a Glimpse- PMI and Central Bank Actions

SAO PAULO | By Marcus Nunes | Markit´s PMI survey is a favorite of central banks and financial institutions. The panel below shows both the global (comprised of 32 countries) and the Eurozone and Japan PMI´s. Trichet´s rate increase ‘folly’ of April and June 2011 as well as Draghi´s “ECB will do whatever it takes” of July 2012 are marked. So is the “Abe effect” in Japan.

Markets 17th September 2013

Japanese Banks Are Back

The Corner Team via the Bank for International Settlements (BIS) | Japanese banks have recently become once again the biggest suppliers of cross-border bank credit, as they used to be in the 80s. The severe banking crisis of the 1990s, along with banking deregulation in the archipelago, reversed their expansion, the last BIS report points out. Their market share reached a low in 2007 before rebounding.

World economy 16th July 2013

Abenomics work

BARCELONA | By CaixaBank research team | Our scenario expects this expansion to continue in 2014 since the effects of the Bank of Japan’s quantitative easing should continue until well into the coming year.

World economy 24th May 2013

Asia Rising: A New Competitive Landscape

By Ray Kwong | Broad strokes, when you’re talking about the 21st century possibly becoming the Asian Century, one thing becomes crystal clear: it’s not preordained and it’s not just all about China. With its varied cultures and emphasis on education, self-reliance and upward mobility, Asia may overtake the West as the world’s economic engine.

World economy 16th April 2013