Tokyo, 1 April, /AJMEDIA
Big manufacturers’ sentiment worsens to 14 in March from 17: BOJ
TOKYO – Business confidence among major Japanese manufacturers worsened to 14 in March from 17 three months earlier, the Bank of Japan’s Tankan survey showed Friday.
The reading of the key index measuring confidence among companies such as automakers and electronics makers compares with an average market forecast of 11 in a Kyodo News survey.
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U.S. announces largest-ever release of oil reserves amid Russia’s war
WASHINGTON – The United States on Thursday announced plans for its largest-ever release of emergency oil reserves in an effort to address rising energy prices amid Russia’s war in Ukraine, vowing to put 1 million barrels on the market per day for the next six months.
President Joe Biden is coordinating the action with allies and partners around the world, and other countries are expected to follow suit, bringing the total release to “well over” an average of 1 million barrels per day, according to the White House.
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Tokyo Stock Exchange marks final trading day ahead of bourse shakeup
TOKYO – The Tokyo Stock Exchange marked Friday its final trading day ahead of its reorganization on Monday, as the bourse endeavors to lure more foreign investors in its first major shakeup in over 60 years.
Japan’s main bourse has seen the number of companies listed on the First Section more than quadruple from 495 to 2,177 since 1949 when it reopened under its present name after World War II. The current market structure came into being in 1961 with the creation of the Second Section.
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Japan not pulling out of Russian energy project: PM Kishida
TOKYO – Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Thursday that Japan will not withdraw from the Sakhalin 2 oil and gas project in the Russian Far East despite firms of other countries exiting in response to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“It is an extremely important project in terms of energy security as it has contributed to the long-term, stable supply of inexpensive liquefied natural gas,” said Kishida in a parliamentary session.
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China vows to restrict visa issuance to U.S. officials in retaliation
BEIJING – China pledged Thursday to limit visas to U.S. government members, in retaliation for Washington’s imposition of visa restrictions on Chinese officials for their alleged repressive acts against ethnic and religious minority groups.
The United States has “concocted vile lies under the pretext of the so-called human rights issue,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told reporters in Beijing.
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Bain Capital eyes Toshiba buyout as reform plan derailed
TOKYO – U.S. investment fund Bain Capital is considering acquiring Toshiba Corp., sources familiar with the plan said Thursday, adding to uncertainties over the outlook for the Japanese conglomerate after its reform plan was rejected by shareholders last week
Toshiba’s largest shareholder Effissimo Capital Management Pte Ltd. indicated it would sell Toshiba shares it holds to Bain Capital if it launched a takeover bid.
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Ukrainian president calls on Australia to impose stronger sanctions
SYDNEY – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy called for stronger sanctions against Russia in a virtual address to Australia’s parliament on Thursday, stressing global security is at risk as Russia threatens to use nuclear weapons in its invasion of Ukraine.
Speaking via a translator, Zelenskyy warned that fallout from a Russian nuclear attack could reach Australia, saying the war in his country is a “real threat” to Australia and other nations.
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Japan’s long-term gov’t debt may be at worst level of $8 tril.
TOKYO – The balance of long-term Japanese government debt may have topped 1,000 trillion yen ($8.2 trillion) for the first time at the end of March, officials said Thursday.
The estimate signals that the nation’s fiscal health, already the worst among major developed countries, has been further deteriorating on swelling social security costs as a result the aging population, falling tax revenues and emergency spending in response to the coronavirus pandemic, the officials said.
