The Bank of Japan held rates steady, but hawkish sentiment grew with two dissenting votes. The market was surprised by the announcement to sell ETFs and J-REITs, which signalled the BoJ's firm commitment to policy normalisation. We continue to see October as the most likely time for a rate hike
Japan: the weak JPY has turned from a problem to a nest egg . The level of JPY weakness has changed from a ‘problem’ to a ‘nest egg’ as the Trump administration’s tariff rate hikes require a buffer. With the buffer of a weaker JPY, the auto industry may be able to continue domestic production without having to raise prices significantly in the US in response to higher tariff rates.
As a new fiscal discipline, we need a new fiscal target that can take into account macroeconomic conditions, guiding net domestic fund demand to be around -5%. The previous fiscal target of achieving a primary balance surplus was flawed because it aimed to achieve a surplus regardless of macroeconomic conditions, making it impossible to sustainably expand the size of the economy.
Until the corporate savings rate attains a normal negative level and structural deflationary pressures are eliminated, the policy mix of monetary and fiscal policies should maintain the expanding power of the Japanese economy. The increased predictability of firms’ sustained nominal GDP expansion would cause firms to shift their management strategies from cost cutting to investment.
