Here's a statement of the obvious: The opinions expressed here are those of the participants, not those of the Mutual Fund Observer. We cannot vouch for the accuracy or appropriateness of any of it, though we do encourage civility and good humor.
Bloomberg Asia is reporting Japan's CPI rose to 1.3% for December. I couldn't find any news links on this but if true it could mean Japan is climbing out of deflation. Abenomics seems to be working. Bullish for Japan.
My question remains what happens when all of the things they need to import (energy being a big one) become all the more expensive? Maybe bullish from an investment standpoint, but whether it's sustainable is questionable and I just don't think a lot of the country's issues are being addressed. Again, it's buying the reality the country would like rather than facing the reality the country has and actually making difficult decisions. Oh well.
I hope Japan does well. I just think they have other issues to contend with and causing inflation could easily bring a whole new set of problems.
Edited to add: "Again, according to EDMC data for 2008, in 2008 Japan imported almost 99 percent of its oil, 98 percent of its coal, and 96 percent of its gas. Most (88 percent) of oil came from the Middle East, particularly the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Qatar, and Kuwait. For coal, Japan relies on Australia, China, Indonesia, Russia, the U.S., South Africa, and Canada. Almost all domestic gas is imported LNG, primarily from Indonesia (20.4 percent of imports in 2008), Malaysia (19 percent), Australia (17 percent), Qatar (12 percent), Brunei (9 percent) and the UAE (8 percent)."
Reply to @scott: Good points. On the energy front, that's why Japan invested so much in nuclear energy. Fukushima placed a dark cloud on that. This one of things that we will not know the outcome for some years. Either this will be the beginning of good times for Japan or it will be another blip on the history timeline.
1. Kill the value of the Yen.....inflating import prices on all products. 2. A new sales tax to take place in April, 2014
Their currency being killed is going to raise inflation; but that doesn't spell success in a business sense...IMO.
Also I did not look for the link; but recall from a few days ago regarding Japan and record imports of LNG mostly for power production to offset the loss of the nuclear site.
I'm not assured that their current central bank plan is going to be of any value; and hopefully our government will not look towards their plan as a continued method in this country.
Comments
http://www.cnbc.com/id/101378978
I hope Japan does well. I just think they have other issues to contend with and causing inflation could easily bring a whole new set of problems.
Edited to add: "Again, according to EDMC data for 2008, in 2008 Japan imported almost 99 percent of its oil, 98 percent of its coal, and 96 percent of its gas. Most (88 percent) of oil came from the Middle East, particularly the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Qatar, and Kuwait. For coal, Japan relies on Australia, China, Indonesia, Russia, the U.S., South Africa, and Canada. Almost all domestic gas is imported LNG, primarily from Indonesia (20.4 percent of imports in 2008), Malaysia (19 percent), Australia (17 percent), Qatar (12 percent), Brunei (9 percent) and the UAE (8 percent)."
http://www.forbes.com/sites/stephenharner/2011/06/17/japans-energy-dependence/2/
I posted this previous: Their currency being killed is going to raise inflation; but that doesn't spell success in a business sense...IMO.
Also I did not look for the link; but recall from a few days ago regarding Japan and record imports of LNG mostly for power production to offset the loss of the nuclear site.
I'm not assured that their current central bank plan is going to be of any value; and hopefully our government will not look towards their plan as a continued method in this country.
Take care,
Catch
This news coming across this morning over here. Japan's labor force wants a raise. In the case of Toyota. they haven't had one in five years.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-01-30/abenomics-at-risk-as-workers-struggle-to-keep-up-with-inflation.html