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Kyodo news summary -7-(Japan Economic Newswire Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) ---------- Japan's key bond yield hits 19-month low on BOJ surprise action TOKYO - The yield on the bellwether 10-year Japanese government bond hit a 19-month low on Friday after the Bank of Japan decided in a surprise move to expand its bond purchases as part of its additional monetary easing. The yield on the No. 335, 0.5 percent issue, the main yardstick of long-term interest rates, ended interdealer trading at 0.455 percent, down 0.010 percentage point from Thursday's close, after touching 0.435 percent at one time. ---------- Dollar jumps to mid-111 yen as BOJ surprises with further easing TOKYO - The U.S. dollar jumped to the mid-111 yen zone Friday in Tokyo after the Bank of Japan surprised markets by adding to its massive monetary easing measures to prop up the economy and lift inflation. At 5 p.m., the dollar fetched 111.22-23 yen compared with 109.17-27 yen in New York and 109.17-19 yen in Tokyo at 5 p.m. Thursday. It moved between 109.18 yen and 111.52 yen during the day, changing hands most frequently at 110.57 yen. ---------- Japan ministers hope BOJ's easing will boost sluggish economy TOKYO - Cabinet ministers welcomed on Friday the Bank of Japan's unexpected decision to further ease monetary policy, saying it will help bolster the nation's sluggish economy. BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda "made a good decision," Finance Minister Taro Aso told reporters following the central bank's one-day Policy Board meeting, where the additional easing was adopted in a 5-to-4 vote. "Given Japan's economic situation, (the easing) is likely to give a boost to economic growth," he added. ---------- Sharp logs first-half net profit for 1st time in 4 years TOKYO - Sharp Corp. on Friday reported a group net profit of 4.74 billion yen for the April-September period, returning to the black in the first half for the first time in four years, as gains on securities sales helped offset costs stemming from restructuring its unprofitable European operations. The net profit compares with a loss of 4.33 billion yen in the same period last year. ---------- Giant Japan pension fund GPIF to buy more stocks, foreign bonds TOKYO - Japan's giant public pension fund said Friday that it will increase the proportion of domestic stocks and foreign bonds in its investment portfolio to 25 percent and 15 percent, respectively, while slashing its holdings of debt issued at home to 35 percent. In tandem with the Bank of Japan's decision earlier in the day to ease its monetary policy further, the Government Pension Investment Fund's move is apparently aimed at boosting financial markets, with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's government having set higher share prices as one of its goals. ---------- Sony posts wider 1st-half net loss on mobile business slump TOKYO - Sony Corp. on Friday reported a far wider first-half group net loss, as its struggling mobile phone business bit into the bottom line. The beleaguered Japanese electronics giant posted a net loss of 109.16 billion yen for the six months to Sept. 30, compared to a loss of 16.50 billion yen in the same period last year. ---------- TEPCO logs April-Sept. group net profit of 290 bil. yen TOKYO - Tokyo Electric Power Co. on Friday reported a group net profit of 290.15 billion yen for the first half of fiscal 2014 ending March, due partly to cost-cutting efforts despite its nuclear reactors remaining offline. The operator of the crippled Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant also attributed the profit to postponing repair work at power stations, although the figure was down 52.9 percent from a year earlier. (c) 2014 Kyodo News |