Tokyo, 14 October, /AJMEDIA/
Dollar briefly rises to upper 147 yen zone, 32-year high
NEW YORK – The U.S. dollar rose briefly to the upper 147 yen range Thursday morning in New York, hitting its highest level in over 32 years following the release of data showing slightly higher-than-expected U.S. inflation.
In view of the consumer price index, many investors anticipated that U.S. interest rates will keep rising to fight inflation and decided to sell the Japanese currency as it brings relatively low returns under the country’s monetary easing policy, analysts say.
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Japan to act appropriately against excessive yen volatility: minister
WASHINGTON – Japan is watching foreign exchange movements with a heightened sense of vigilance and is ready to take appropriate steps to counter excessive volatility, Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said Thursday after the yen plunged to a 32-year low against the U.S. dollar.
Speaking to reporters after meeting with his counterparts from the Group of 20 nations, Suzuki stuck to his view that excessive fluctuations, led by speculators, cannot be tolerated.
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North Korea launches ballistic missile toward Sea of Japan
TOKYO/SEOUL – North Korea launched a short-range ballistic missile toward the Sea of Japan early Friday, the Japanese government and the South Korean military said.
The missile, launched at around 1:47 a.m., is believed to have already come down outside Japan’s exclusive economic zone, some 370 kilometers from the coast, Japanese Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada told reporters.
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G-20 finance chiefs agree to avoid monetary tightening “spillovers”
WASHINGTON – The Group of 20 major economies agreed to work to avoid “spillovers” of monetary policy tightening as central banks move to tackle inflation, the chair said Thursday, amid concerns that higher interest rates will hit debt-saddled countries.
To achieve price stability and avoid spillover impacts, the G-20 is “committed to calibrate the pace of monetary policy tightening appropriately,” G-20 chair Indonesia said in a press release following a two-day meeting of the group’s finance ministers and central bank governors in Washington.
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No joint statement by G-20 finance chiefs amid Ukraine crisis: Japan
WASHINGTON – No joint statement will be issued by the finance chiefs of the Group of 20 major economies after their just-ended meeting, Japanese Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said Thursday, citing the difficulty of reaching a consensus amid Russia’s war in Ukraine.
Suzuki, however, said a chair’s summary of the two-day meeting in Washington will be released. He said the document will mention a shared recognition among the G-20 members of increased currency volatility, with many central banks tightening their monetary policies to tackle inflation.
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Suspect in Sapporo woman’s death says she asked him to kill her
SAPPORO – A 53-year-old man suspected of abandoning the body of a female university student in his apartment in Sapporo, Hokkaido, has told police she asked him to kill her, investigative sources said Thursday.
Hokkaido police have been questioning Isamu Ono after the body of 22-year-old Yuina Segawa was found in his apartment on Saturday.
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Fast Retailing posts record profits on strong Uniqlo sales abroad
TOKYO – Fast Retailing Co., the operator of the Uniqlo clothing chain, said Thursday it posted a record net profit of 273.34 billion yen ($1.9 billion) for the year ended August, up 60.9 percent from a year earlier, helped by robust overseas sales.
A recovery from the coronavirus pandemic has led to a rebound in demand, the Japanese firm said. The rapid fall of the yen against other major currencies also contributed to the result by increasing the value of its overseas earnings.
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Judo: Japan wins 5th consecutive team gold at world c’ships
TASHKENT – Japan defeated France 4-2 in the final Thursday to claim the mixed team title at the world judo championships, the fifth consecutive time it has won the event since it was added to the competition program in 2017.
Goki Tajima, Hyoga Ota, Kenshi Harada and Saki Niizoe won their matches for Japan on the final day in the Uzbek capital of Tashkent. At last year’s Tokyo Olympics, France beat host Japan in the mixed team final.