- 4 Sep 2015
- 2,306
- 1,906
Biden just said he will defend Taiwan if China invades. I wonder if this will lower the yen back to about 102 yen a dollar.
The yen is in free fall. Inflation, by some measures, is the highest in decades. And conventional wisdom says a rate increase could ease both problems. But the Bank of Japan — never one to follow the crowd — has remained steadfastly committed to its ultralow interest rates, arguing that making money more expensive now would only suppress already weak demand and set back a fragile economic recovery from the pandemic. [...] Japan wants good inflation — the kind created by lively consumer demand. But it has gotten bad inflation — the kind created by a strong dollar and supply shortfalls related to the pandemic and the war in Ukraine — and that is why the bank should stay the course.
In Japan, however, there is broad agreement that — at least for now — a rate rise would do more harm than good. The world's third-largest Japanese economy has barely returned to its pre-pandemic levels, and wages have stagnated. However, in a tight labour market, unemployment remained below 3 per cent during the pandemic's worst months. "To bring inflation in Japan down, you would have to slow demand rather sharply, and that's tricky because demand was already sort of weak relative to other economies," said Stefan Angrick, a senior economist at Moody's Analytics in Japan.
The yen weakened below 140 to the dollar for the first time since November on Thursday, as expectations of a widening interest-rate spread between Japan and the U.S. fueled selling. The Japanese currency has fallen by about 13 yen from its year-to-date high against the dollar in January and shows no sign of bottoming out. It has also softened against currencies like the euro and pound. The renewed sell-off in the yen comes as the Federal Reserve is expected to hike interest rates again by July, widening the gap with a Bank of Japan that continues to stand pat. Speculation that new BOJ Gov. Kazuo Ueda would move early toward tighter monetary policy has faded as he signals no change in the near term from the bank's ultraloose stance. In a media interview Thursday, Ueda warned against making hasty adjustments. So far in May, Japan's currency has weakened by about 4 yen against the dollar.
The yen weakened past 150 to the dollar on Tuesday following higher-than-expected inflation data for the U.S. economy in January. The Japanese currency touched 150.87, its weakest against the dollar since the yen last broke the 150 threshold in November. The January U.S. consumer price index showed prices rising 3.1% from a year earlier, down from a 3.4% increase in December but cooling more slowly than the 2.9% expected by market watchers.
No cheap options in Japan?We're hosting in the US. Our hosting fees have increased by 85% since we signed up with our current provider in 2011. If 1 USD remains at levels of +150 JPY, we might have to consider cheaper options. Anyone speak Russian?
I think there are many more restrictions to what can be hosted online in Japan :/No cheap options in Japan?
He's not posting p#rn or bittorrrents...I think there are many more restrictions to what can be hosted online in Japan :/
True, I forgot the reason though but I thought I remember someone saying it's harder to host in Japan than the US for legal reasons, but I guess we'll have to hear from him the answer, because maybe it is just more expensive somehowHe's not posting p#rn or bittorrrents...
The libel laws are stricter in Japan. I know that's one thing you have to be careful about.True, I forgot the reason though but I thought I remember someone saying it's harder to host in Japan than the US for legal reasons, but I guess we'll have to hear from him the answer, because maybe it is just more expensive somehow
No, but it's important to remember that Japan's take on copyright and defamation are decidedly at odds with western sensibilities.He's not posting p#rn or bittorrrents...
Maybe that would increase site traffic and the additional ad revenue would help with the hosting costs.He's not posting p#rn or bittorrrents...
True. But it would be a different ad network.Maybe that would increase site traffic and the additional ad revenue would help with the hosting costs.
Japan stepped closer to currency intervention with its strongest warning yet as the yen slid to the weakest level in about 34 years against the dollar. The currency dipped 0.3% to 151.97 per dollar in Tokyo on Wednesday, passing the 151.95 level that prompted Japan to wade into markets in October 2022.
I keep buying on this news and I keep losing money the lower it goes! It's got to come back doesn't it?
The U.S. dollar climbed to a fresh 34-year peak against the yen in quiet trading on Monday, with investors taking their cue from the Federal Reserve's higher-for-longer interest rate stance, even as they remained alert to any signs of intervention by Japan to prop up its struggling currency. The dollar rose to 154.85 yen versus the Japanese currency, its highest since mid-1990. It was last up 0.1% at 154.82 yen, a whisker away from the 155-level that is next on traders' radars for possible intervention. The yen hit fresh lows ahead of the Bank of Japan's (BOJ) policy meeting on Friday. Market players took note of the fact that Japan has refrained from intervening in the currency market despite the yen hitting several 34-year lows this year.