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Bank of Japan

The latest news and top stories on the Bank of Japan. A prominent Tokyo-based governmental body, the Bank of Japan (BOJ) serves as Japan’s central bank, established in 1882. Its primary mission is to maintain price stability and ensure financial system stability, aiming for a 2 per cent inflation target. Key activities include issuing banknotes, implementing monetary policy, providing settlement services and conducting economic research. The BOJ is notable for pioneering ultra-loose monetary policies, including Zero and Negative Interest Rate Policies, significantly influencing the global financial landscape as the central bank of the world’s fourth-largest economy.

Pedestrians pass a foreign currency indicator board showing the rate of the US dollar against the Japanese yen in Tokyo on August 3. The yen surged against the US dollar, reaching its strongest level in about three months after Japanese and US monetary authorities conducted a coordinated intervention to buy the yen for the first time in 28 years. Photo: EPA

Banking & finance

Macroscope | Behind the AI stock market bubble lies a weak yen

The tech stock boom, financed in large part by the yen carry trade, is at risk of collapse if the currency strengthens.

8 Aug 2026 - 4:30PMvideocam

Banking & finance

Macroscope | US efforts to prop up the yen risk doing more harm than good

6 Aug 2026 - 4:30PM

Japan

US-Japan trade thaw driven by shared yen for stronger currency

5 Aug 2026 - 6:37PM

Banking & finance

Rare US-Japan intervention as yen hits 40-year low: what does it mean?

Washington steps in to save Tokyo’s weakened currency in first joint yen-buying action for almost 30 years, causing its value to surge.

3 Aug 2026 - 6:30PM

Japan

Macroscope | Why Japan should be able to weather a US market crash

Successive Japanese governments have spent decades building financial infrastructure that other Asian countries can emulate.

18 Jul 2026 - 4:30PM

Japan

Macroscope | 3 reasons behind the Japanese yen’s persistent decline

The continued slide in the yen has raised concern, but what happens in the bond market will determine whether the bearishness extends far beyond Japan.

9 Jul 2026 - 5:12PMvideocam

Japan

As Japanese yen sinks to a 40-year low, focus turns to the carry trade

Analysts ponder what will happen if the conditions which currently support the currency’s carry trade begin to reverse.

9 Jul 2026 - 10:08AM

Focus has turned to the yen carry trade as the Japanese yen nears a 40-year low against the US dollar. Photo: Reuters

Hong Kong stock market

Can Hong Kong absorb a US$100 billion share flood amid the global AI boom?

A surge in shares becoming eligible for trading comes as investors pour into AI-linked stocks in rival markets.

2 Jul 2026 - 8:30AMvideocam

International Property

Will tourist visa fees, interest rate policy impact Japan’s housing sector?

Do property investments in the world’s fifth-largest economy add up for foreigners after visa fee hikes and a tightened monetary policy?

28 Jun 2026 - 1:58PMvideocam

Banking & finance

Opinion | AI has been known to hallucinate. So have financial markets

Stock markets are booming on the assumption that US tech giants will deliver, but as liquidity becomes scarce, a reality check will ensue.

19 Jun 2026 - 8:30PM

A sign displays outside Nasdaq on the day of SpaceX’s initial public offering in New York on June 12. Photo: Reuters

Japan

Opinion | Short-sellers are circling as Japan’s yen presents a tempting target

A Japan declining in competitiveness presents a tempting target, with short-sellers likely to also target economies like India and Indonesia.

17 Jun 2026 - 10:50PMvideocam

Bank of Japan governor Kazuo Ueda attends a press conference in Tokyo. The central bank kept its ultra-low interest rates unchanged on June 14, pushing the yen to a fresh 34-year low against the US dollar. Photo: AFP

Semiconductors

How massive AI-driven demand for MLCCs triggered a supply bottleneck

Power-hungry data centres fuel demand for MLCCs, which are crucial components for modern innovations including smartphones and electric cars.

15 Jun 2026 - 5:29PMvideocam

United States

Macroscope | Investors expecting a US interest rate rise could be in for a surprise

Rising bond yields are doing some of the Fed’s work, as are investor fears over the US central bank’s independence under Kevin Warsh.

11 Jun 2026 - 4:30PM

China consumption

Gold slump: China’s sales plunge as precious metal’s price dips

While China’s interest in gold is unlikely to fade, investment-grade product sales have dwindled after 15 months of retail growth.

7 Jun 2026 - 5:00PMvideocam

Gold sales have slumped in China as the global spot price drops amid consumer caution and an unstable economic outlook. Photo: Getty Images

South Korea

Macroscope | How the AI chip boom made South Korea a victim of its own success

While tech giants are driving South Korea’s stock market higher, the country’s currency is struggling and foreign investors are pulling out.

4 Jun 2026 - 4:30PMvideocam

South Korea

‘Transitory euphoria’: South Korea’s strong economic outlook masks key hurdles

The surge in demand for semiconductors is cyclical, while other sectors in the country are lagging, analysts say.

29 May 2026 - 8:21PM

South Korea

Reality deficit: how South Korea lost the plot on AI

A viral ‘baseball goddess’, a wolf that never was and a deepfake epidemic. Generative AI is rewriting South Korea’s reality.

17 May 2026 - 11:00AM

South Korea

Samsung union’s strike threat fuels fears of South Korea’s economic slowdown

The AI boom and SK Hynix’s profit-sharing arrangement with its workers have reportedly galvanised Samsung’s biggest union to take action.

14 May 2026 - 5:00PM

Union members from Samsung Electronics stage a protest in front of the company’s plant in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi province last month. Photo: The Korea Times

Banking & finance

Macroscope | Australia’s interest rate rise signals growing hawkish stance in Asia

Reserve Bank of Australia is less an outlier than a harbinger of global monetary trends in the wake of war-induced supply shocks.

7 May 2026 - 4:30PM

Japan

Macroscope | Why fixing Japan’s monetary policy isn’t getting any easier

The wrong kind of inflation and the effects of the war in Iran complicate the outlook for Japanese interest rates.

23 Apr 2026 - 5:20PMvideocam

Japan

Macroscope | Will Japan’s corporate bond initiative signal a shift in Asia financing?

Japanese authorities are promoting the domestic corporate bond market as an alternative for firms seeking funding without losing control.

18 Apr 2026 - 5:33PMvideocam

A man stands in front of an electronic board displaying the closing numbers of the Nikkei Stock Average on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, in Tokyo, on April 2. Photo: AFP

South Korea

No oil for BBQ: South Korean restaurants gasp for help amid fuel crisis

Prices for ingredients and packaging have risen by as much as 30 per cent since the start of the Iran war.

1 Apr 2026 - 2:44PMvideocam

A Korean barbecue restaurant. Small business owners in South Korea are feeling the pinch from rising fuel prices. Photo: Shutterstock

Hong Kong stock market

Markets brace for rate hikes as prolonged Iran war stokes tightening fears

The European Central Bank has become more hawkish, reverting to wording that analysts say often precedes interest-rate increases.

23 Mar 2026 - 9:46PM

South Korea

South Korea risks US rift over Iran’s Hormuz Strait squeeze

Any deal with Iran could undermine South Korea’s alliance with the US and their US$350 billion trade deal.

20 Mar 2026 - 8:10AMvideocam

China's population

Can AI help China cushion economic fallout from its rapidly ageing population?

As fertility rates fall, Asian economies face a daunting challenge – sustaining growth with fewer workers.

13 Mar 2026 - 3:04PMvideocam

A robot serving food and drinks on the China Mobile stand, taken on March 3 in Barcelona during the Mobile World Congress, the world’s biggest mobile technology showcase and fair. Photo: AFP

Japan

Macroscope | Why the IMF is right to press Japan on its fiscal risks

The fiscal and monetary policies of advanced economies have global repercussions, and Takaichi’s expansionary fiscal agenda risks market pushback.

21 Feb 2026 - 4:30PMvideocam

Japan

Macroscope | Japan will soon learn how far Takaichi can ride her luck

While Japan is unlikely to have its own Liz Truss moment, high debt levels and an empowered populist in charge are still reasons for concern.

12 Feb 2026 - 4:30PMvideocam

Japan

Japan’s wage squeeze undermines Takaichi’s ‘trickle down’ plans

Fresh labour ministry figures show the cost of living crisis is deepening, as inflation continues to outpace salary increases for workers.

11 Feb 2026 - 7:25PM

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Bank of Japan

.css-1pcrwvc{color:#2aa191;}Macroscope | Behind the AI stock market bubble lies a weak yen

The tech stock boom, financed in large part by the yen carry trade, is at risk of collapse if the currency strengthens.

Macroscope | US efforts to prop up the yen risk doing more harm than good

US-Japan trade thaw driven by shared yen for stronger currency

Rare US-Japan intervention as yen hits 40-year low: what does it mean?

Washington steps in to save Tokyo’s weakened currency in first joint yen-buying action for almost 30 years, causing its value to surge.

Macroscope | Why Japan should be able to weather a US market crash

Successive Japanese governments have spent decades building financial infrastructure that other Asian countries can emulate.

Macroscope | 3 reasons behind the Japanese yen’s persistent decline

The continued slide in the yen has raised concern, but what happens in the bond market will determine whether the bearishness extends far beyond Japan.

As Japanese yen sinks to a 40-year low, focus turns to the carry trade

Analysts ponder what will happen if the conditions which currently support the currency’s carry trade begin to reverse.

Can Hong Kong absorb a US$100 billion share flood amid the global AI boom?

A surge in shares becoming eligible for trading comes as investors pour into AI-linked stocks in rival markets.

Will tourist visa fees, interest rate policy impact Japan’s housing sector?

Do property investments in the world’s fifth-largest economy add up for foreigners after visa fee hikes and a tightened monetary policy?

Opinion | AI has been known to hallucinate. So have financial markets

Stock markets are booming on the assumption that US tech giants will deliver, but as liquidity becomes scarce, a reality check will ensue.

Opinion | Short-sellers are circling as Japan’s yen presents a tempting target

A Japan declining in competitiveness presents a tempting target, with short-sellers likely to also target economies like India and Indonesia.

How massive AI-driven demand for MLCCs triggered a supply bottleneck

Power-hungry data centres fuel demand for MLCCs, which are crucial components for modern innovations including smartphones and electric cars.

Macroscope | Investors expecting a US interest rate rise could be in for a surprise

Rising bond yields are doing some of the Fed’s work, as are investor fears over the US central bank’s independence under Kevin Warsh.

Gold slump: China’s sales plunge as precious metal’s price dips

While China’s interest in gold is unlikely to fade, investment-grade product sales have dwindled after 15 months of retail growth.

Macroscope | How the AI chip boom made South Korea a victim of its own success

While tech giants are driving South Korea’s stock market higher, the country’s currency is struggling and foreign investors are pulling out.

‘Transitory euphoria’: South Korea’s strong economic outlook masks key hurdles

The surge in demand for semiconductors is cyclical, while other sectors in the country are lagging, analysts say.

Reality deficit: how South Korea lost the plot on AI

A viral ‘baseball goddess’, a wolf that never was and a deepfake epidemic. Generative AI is rewriting South Korea’s reality.

Samsung union’s strike threat fuels fears of South Korea’s economic slowdown

The AI boom and SK Hynix’s profit-sharing arrangement with its workers have reportedly galvanised Samsung’s biggest union to take action.

Macroscope | Australia’s interest rate rise signals growing hawkish stance in Asia

Reserve Bank of Australia is less an outlier than a harbinger of global monetary trends in the wake of war-induced supply shocks.

Macroscope | Why fixing Japan’s monetary policy isn’t getting any easier

The wrong kind of inflation and the effects of the war in Iran complicate the outlook for Japanese interest rates.

Macroscope | Will Japan’s corporate bond initiative signal a shift in Asia financing?

Japanese authorities are promoting the domestic corporate bond market as an alternative for firms seeking funding without losing control.

No oil for BBQ: South Korean restaurants gasp for help amid fuel crisis

Prices for ingredients and packaging have risen by as much as 30 per cent since the start of the Iran war.

Markets brace for rate hikes as prolonged Iran war stokes tightening fears

The European Central Bank has become more hawkish, reverting to wording that analysts say often precedes interest-rate increases.

South Korea risks US rift over Iran’s Hormuz Strait squeeze

Any deal with Iran could undermine South Korea’s alliance with the US and their US$350 billion trade deal.

Can AI help China cushion economic fallout from its rapidly ageing population?

As fertility rates fall, Asian economies face a daunting challenge – sustaining growth with fewer workers.

Macroscope | Why the IMF is right to press Japan on its fiscal risks

The fiscal and monetary policies of advanced economies have global repercussions, and Takaichi’s expansionary fiscal agenda risks market pushback.

Macroscope | Japan will soon learn how far Takaichi can ride her luck

While Japan is unlikely to have its own Liz Truss moment, high debt levels and an empowered populist in charge are still reasons for concern.

Japan’s wage squeeze undermines Takaichi’s ‘trickle down’ plans

Fresh labour ministry figures show the cost of living crisis is deepening, as inflation continues to outpace salary increases for workers.

Macroscope | Behind the AI stock market bubble lies a weak yen