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Japan’s Finance Minister Shunichi Kato said on Wednesday that he will closely monitor bond market situations as he is concerned about a recent spike yields in Japan.This comment came after two sources told Reuters on Tuesday that Japanese officials will consider trimming issuance of super-long bonds in the wake of recent sharp rises in yields for the notes. The Ministry of Finance (MOF) will make a decision after discussions with market participants around mid- to late-June, the sources said.Market reaction  At the time of writing, the USD/JPY pair is trading 0.28% lower on the...

Asia-Pacific stock markets presented a varied landscape at Tuesday’s close, with investors continuing to navigate the evolving global trade climate, particularly after US President Donald Trump deferred a significant tariff hike on European Union imports. While some regional bourses found positive momentum, others, including Indian benchmarks like the Sensex, experienced a more turbulent session.The overarching theme for the day was a careful assessment of international trade dynamics. Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 ended the day 0.51% higher at 37,724.11, and the broader Topix index rose 0.64% to 2,769.49, suggesting some optimism in Tokyo....

Japan's tariff negotiator is expected to propose greater investment by Japanese companies in the United States in the upcoming ministerial-level tariff talks in Washington. Economic Revitalization Minister Akazawa Ryosei is set to take part in the third round of talks in Washington on Friday, local time. Sources say Japan will present a plan to expand Japanese firms' investment in the US. It is likely to include Nippon Steel's offer to invest billions of dollars in US Steel, if its bid to acquire the US steelmaker is approved. Japan apparently aims...

A major shareholder of Japan's Fuji Media Holdings says it will launch a proxy fight so that its candidates for the firm's board will gain approval at the upcoming general shareholders' meeting. Fuji Media Holdings is the parent company of Fuji Television Network. They have been under fire for their handling of a sexual misconduct scandal. The shareholder, Dalton Investments, has proposed 12 candidates for the board, including Kitao Yoshitaka, the head of Japanese financial services firm SBI Holdings. Fuji Media, which opposes the proposal, has picked 11 candidates of...

Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba said on Friday that there was no change in Japan's stance on US tariffs and its demand that they be eliminated.Key quotesNo change to our stance on U.S. tariffs.Discussed U.S. tariffs with President Trump.Discussed diplomacy, and security with Trump as well.There might be an occasion when I’ll visit the U.S. for in-person talks with President Trump.No change to our stance of demanding the elimination of tariffs.No change to our policy of talking with the U.S. about creating U.S. jobs.Market reaction   At the time of writing, USD/JPY is...

Japan’s Finance Minister Shunichi Kato said on Tuesday that he expects any talks with US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent this week to be based on this understanding of foreign exchange.Key quotesWill hold bilateral meetings with counterparts at the G7 finance leaders’ meeting later this week.Expect to discuss various topics, including FX, if I were to meet Bessent on sidelines of G7 gathering.Will scrutinise the impact of U.S. fiscal, monetary policy on Japan’s economy, when asked about Moody’s downgrade of US debt rating.In previous bilateral meeting with Bessent, two sides confirmed...

Japanese Finance Minister Katsunobu Kato said he’ll seek another opportunity to talk with his US counterpart Scott Bessent next week to discuss currency matters, building on their dialogue last month.“We confirmed that currency rates should be determined by the market, and that excessive volatility can harm the economy and financial stability,” Kato said Friday at a post-cabinet meeting press conference, referring to his April bilateral meeting with the US Treasury secretary in Washington. “I’m looking for a chance to speak with Bessent again next week to discuss these points, if...

Sign up to receive CFR President Mike Froman’s analysis on the most important foreign policy story of the week, delivered to your inbox every Friday afternoon. Subscribe to The World This Week. More From Our Experts Greetings from Tokyo. More on: Japan United States U.S. Economy Trade My deep interest in Japan dates back to my days working as a young summer associate at a Japanese law firm in Tokyo in 1989. (My now-wife, Nancy, worked at the rival law firm.) In those days, Japan was in the midst of an incredible economic boom...

US President Donald Trump has touted an increase in new investments coming into the country at an event with some of the world's business leaders. More than 20 CEOs from major companies planning to invest took part in the event at the White House on Wednesday. Trump said, "The companies represented in this room have collectively announced more than 2 trillion dollars in new investments." He also said, "Every new investment, every new factory and every new job created, is a sign of strength in American economy and a declaration...

On President Donald Trump’s much-touted April 2 “Liberation Day,” he unveiled a range of potentially debilitating “reciprocal” tariffs on the United States’ major trading partners—and most other countries as well. Surprisingly, some of the countries facing the highest tariffs after the April announcement were U.S. partners in Asia, such as Japan, South Korea, and Vietnam; Vietnam, a huge trading partner, was hit with a 46 percent “reciprocal” tariff. Trump also put tariffs on Cambodia—a whopping 49 percent for one of East Asia’s poorest countries—and even Australia, a critical security ally...