Operational profits of Japan’s exporters and large manufacturers improved due to weaker JPY
Jun 24, 2015 10:24 am UTC| Commentary
JPY has boosted overseas repatriated profits. While the weak JPY may have inflated import costs at SMEs, lower global energy prices likely offset this impact to some extent.SMEs with direct overseas investment may even...
Japan’s government debt burden rising
Jun 24, 2015 10:13 am UTC| Commentary
Japans government debt has been rising sharply for a long period due to declining nominal GDP, lower government revenue, increasing fiscal stimulus and automatic stabilisers."Although we do not see an immediate default...
Japan's Policy makers continue to prefer a weak JPY
Jun 24, 2015 10:07 am UTC| Commentary
BoJ Governor Haruhiko Kurodas comments on 10 June about the JPY REER being very weak led to significant FX market volatility.Any change in local policy makers views on USD-JPY is not seen, they continue to prefer a weak...
BoJ’s 2% inflation target looks difficult to achieve
Jun 24, 2015 10:02 am UTC| Commentary
Almost all industry participants were sceptical about the BoJs 2% inflation target and the new timeframe for achieving it. They believe it will be difficult to reflate Japans economy following decades-long deflation,...
Norway's unemployment increasing faster
Jun 24, 2015 09:29 am UTC| Commentary
LFS reveals Norways unemployment is increasing fast. In contrast to registered unemployment. Not the most important labour market indicator, but if anything argues for a September cut. The LFS unemployment rate in April...
Firm US dollar weighs on precious metal prices
Jun 24, 2015 09:19 am UTC| Commentary
In view of the very strong US dollar, however which has meanwhile appreciated by nearly 2% against the euro, the losses have actually been fairly moderate.The firm US dollar also meant that gold in euro terms increased to...
Weak real weighs on sugar price despite lower Brazilian sugar production
Jun 24, 2015 09:15 am UTC| Commentary
The sugar price profited only briefly from the figures released by the Brazilian Sugarcane Industry Association (UNICA) yesterday and then shed its interim gains again in the later course of trading because the Brazilian...
South Africa’s plan to move away from coal: 8 steps to make it succeed
Germany lowers voting age to 16 for the European elections
IceCube researchers detect a rare type of energetic neutrino sent from powerful astronomical objects