Institutional Investor (October Issue)
“Atsushi Saito has reinvigorated the Japanese exchange world with a merger and a technology overhaul. Now comes the hard part: winning back market share in Asia.” Following the merger of the Tokyo and Osaka exchanges, the Japan Exchange Group ranks third behind only the NYSE Euronext and Nasdaq OMX. “JPX now controls more than 90 percent of all equity-and derivatives-trading volume in Japan.” Yet, “despite its lead in listed companies, JPX trails in foreign listings. It’s also weak in terms of options, futures contracts and exchange-traded funds (ETFs), compared with the big U.S. exchanges”
Tags: Asia, Atsushi Saito, Derivatives, Equities, ETFs, Futures, IT, Japan, JPX, Market share, Merger, Nasdaq OMX, NYSE Euronext, Options, Osaka, Tokyo, Trading volume, U.S.
The Australian (October 10)
“As Sydney gears up for what could be its hottest October day on record, a landmark study warns that such extremes will be the norm in just 25 years.” The predicted climate departure dates for Australia range “from 2038 in Sydney to 2049 in Adelaide.” West Papua will get hit much earlier (2020) and Anchorage much later (2071), with Tokyo sandwiched in the middle (2041).
Tags: Adelaide, Anchorage, Australia, Climate departure, Extreme temperatures, Sydney, Tokyo, West Papua
Euromoney (September Issue)
“There is nothing understated or stumbling about the recovery in Japanese markets since the Abe government took power last December with a pledge to lift the country out of a prolonged slump. The overvalued yen has plummeted giving a massive boost to beleaguered Japanese exporters, while the Tokyo stock market has gone from global backwater to top performer.”
Tags: Abe government, Global backwater, Japan, Japanese exporters, Recovery, Slump, Tokyo, Top performer, Yen
Reuters (September 25)
“Long-term foreign investors are looking into small cap Japanese shares…. Some fund managers have been dabbling in subcontractors of big Japanese exporters while others look at companies whose coverage by analysts is low and have been neglected by international investors.” At recent Tokyo conferences, the number of overseas money managers has dramatically increased, with many attendees driven by a desire to find out more about small caps.
New York Times (September 8)
“For the International Olympic Committee, environmental concerns in Japan appeared less urgent than the Syrian war on Turkey’s border, a harsh crackdown against antigovernment protesters recently in Istanbul and Spain’s economic recession and high unemployment…. Amid such economic, political and human rights maelstroms, Tokyo was seen as a calm harbor. It won handily over Istanbul in the second round of voting, 60-36, in a secret ballot of Olympic delegates.”
Tags: Environmental concerns, Human rights, IOC, Istanbul, Japan, Olympics, Recession, Spain, Syria, Tokyo, Turkey, Unemployment
Forbes (September 8)
“As for Olympic infrastructure, the Japanese are famously good at meeting deadlines, which should come in handy when state-of-the-art new facilities need to be built. Another factor is Tokyo’s mass transit system, which in many ways is the world’s most sophisticated – indeed far more sophisticated than it was in the 1980s, when it was already well ahead of most Western cities.”
Tags: Deadlines, Facilities, Infrastructure, Japan, Mass transit, Olympics, Sophisticated, Tokyo
Wall Street Journal (June 12)
“Rents go down, grocery bills shrink, companies lay off workers and people move away to live in the countryside—and yet somehow Tokyo continues to be among the world’s most expensive cities for expatriates to live in.” Tokyo shot back to the top of Mercer’s annual list of the most expensive cities in the world. The strength of the yen was a major factor. Osaka ranked third and Nagoya tenth.
“Rents go down, grocery bills shrink, companies lay off workers and people move away to live in the countryside—and yet somehow Tokyo continues to be among the world’s most expensive cities for expatriates to live in.” Tokyo shot back to the top of Mercer’s annual list of the most expensive cities in the world. The strength of the yen was a major factor. Osaka ranked third and Nagoya tenth.
Washington Post (May 1)
Tokyo and Washington made “a welcome step forward” with the decision to move 9,000 marines to other Pacific bases. This “small but significant diplomatic breakthrough” will finally ease “the two-year-old standoff over U.S. bases on the Japanese island of Okinawa.” The deal will strengthen “an alliance that both countries need more than ever” and may even “open the way for an invigoration of strategic cooperation at just the right time in East Asia.”
Bloomberg (January 12, 2012)
In Tokyo, “rents are now at the lowest since Miki Shoji started compiling data in 1990.”
Office rent fell 3.7% in 2011 from 2010. Simultaneously, the Capital’s vacancy rate climbed to 9.01% from 8.91%. With new office space set to increase by 12% in 2012, the vacancy rate is expected to remain high, with continued flexibility on rents.
Tags: Miki Shoji, Office, Rent, Tokyo, Vacancy
Time (May 2)
Urbanization is transforming the global economy and lifting millions out of poverty. A study from the McKinsey Global Institute shows that 20% of the world’s population resides in 600 urban centers, which “account for some 60% of worldwide GDP.” McKinsey believes the mix of urban areas will change dramatically by 2025. Emerging cities, and especially those in China, must be a focus for businesses that want to succeed globally. By 2025, 21 of the 25 top growth cities are forecast to be in the developing world, flanked by Tokyo, New York, London and Los Angeles from the developed world.
Urbanization is transforming the global economy and lifting millions out of poverty. A study from the McKinsey Global Institute shows that 20% of the world’s population resides in 600 urban centers, which “account for some 60% of worldwide GDP.” McKinsey believes the mix of urban areas will change dramatically by 2025. Emerging cities, and especially those in China, must be a focus for businesses that want to succeed globally. By 2025, 21 of the 25 top growth cities are forecast to be in the developing world, flanked by Tokyo, New York, London and Los Angeles from the developed world.
