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Why aren’t Japan’s megabanks joining the US on financial sanctions against Iran?

Earlier today, U.S. Assistant Secretary of Treasury David Cohen visited Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group, Mizuho Financial Group and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group to outline US financial sanctions against Iran. These sanctions were signed into law by US President Barack Obama on 1 July.

The fact that Japan’s megabanks have yet to comply with US sanctions is disturbing, to say the least. With Iran attempting to build nuclear weapons, its access to the global financial system clearly needs to be shut down. Japan, as a nation that stands for nuclear non-proliferation, needs to support the US government in its attempts to ensure that Iran does not use the international financial system to acquire nuclear materials.

The story behind the story: Japan may be bringing in PetroEuros from Iran, which is unacceptable. Iran was part of a consortium of nations that wanted oil traded in euros rather than dollars. The US needs to ensure that its closest ally, Japan, is paying for oil in dollars, while its banks are not allowing Iranian funds to be moved under the radar.

Cohen’s visit is an affirmation of the fact that finances have been observed moving in a way that is not advantageous to US interests and that such flows of funds must be stopped.

Tourism Agency still not serious about tourism

A Kyodo article published today tells us:

A private advisory panel for Japan Tourism Agency chief Hiroshi Mizohata held its first conference on Friday with six experts on various subjects, including sports and business, discussing ways to promote tourism in the country…panel member Saburo Kawabuchi, honorary president of the Japan Football Association, said he hopes to propose ideas for promotion of tourism through exchange programs for soccer…Other experts include Softbank Corp President Masayoshi Son, Mori Building Co President Minoru Mori, Fuji Television Network Chairman Hisashi Hieda and Benesse Holdings Chairman Fukutake Soichiro…The number of foreign tourists to Japan was 6.79 million in 2009, down 18.7% from a year earlier. The government is hoping to attract 10 million visitors to Japan in 2010.

Read more

IMF: Japan’s national debt to hit 250% of GDP in 2015

A report released today by the International Monetary Fund asserts that Japan’s government debt will reach 250% of GDP in 2015. The IMF suggests that Japan increase its consumption tax by 5% as a step towards reducing its public debt. Read more

Keidanren to call for 10% sales tax in Japan?

The Nikkei is reporting that Keidanren (The Japan Business Federation) is set to call for an increase in Japan’s sales tax from the current 5% to 10%, with increases coming as soon as FY2011.

The Nikkei also tells us that Keidanren is seeking a decrease in corporate taxes: Read more

Hatoyama lays out growth strategy

Earlier today, Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama unveiled his economic growth strategy, which is intended to…

…never mind, Hatoyama’s plan is a complete and utter farce, a sick joke with no punchline delivered to a nation of people who need real leadership. Here’s the first paragraph of the Kyodo article:

The government unveiled Wednesday a basic policy for its growth strategy through 2020, aiming to achieve an average economic growth of 3% in nominal terms by boosting demand in the environmental, health and tourism fields and creating a total of 4.76 million jobs in related industries.

The rest of the article is there, but the first paragraph already tells you how stupid, short-sighted and disconnected from reality this government is, and there’s not much need to read the rest. But if you’re in a masochistic mood, here you go: Bumbling fools reveal idiotic policies Gov’t seeks nominal 3% growth through 2020 by demand in key areas.

Massive Fiscal Stimulus Spending Project Proposal #2: Changing Lanes

Back in May, I laid out a plan by which the Japanese government could waste tremendous amounts of public money by simply issuing brand new bank notes of radically different sizes and shapes, while outlawing the use of current bank notes.

While the previous plan could potentially pump billions of yen into the economy, the next plan should cost much more. To do this, Japan simply has to switch driving from the left to the right side of the road. Of course, other countries have pulled this off without spending huge sums of money, such as Sweden, but Japan can avoid falling into this trap by ensuring that the process be as expensive and wasteful as possible. Here’s how it works: Read more

Ishihara: Tokyo to bid for 2020 Olympics

Those who felt that Tokyo’s failed bid for the 2016 Summer Olympics was a colossal waste of $48 million are surely going to groan at today’s headline: Tokyo to bid for 2020 Summer Olympics: Gov Ishihara.

I wonder how this works now that the DPJ is in charge of the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly. Do they have the power or desire to stand up to Ishihara?

No change for now at Narita or Haneda

After transport minister Seiji Maehara announced on Sunday that Tokyo’s Haneda Airport (formally known as Tokyo International Airport) should become a 24 hour hub for domestic and international flights, the governor of Chiba Prefecture and the Mayor of Narita City spoke out strongly against the idea. Maehara’s proposal would alter the longstanding situation in which Haneda primarily serves domestic flights to Tokyo, while Narita handles international flights for the Kanto region.

For anyone living in Tokyo, Maehara’s reasoning is sound; Narita is simply less convenient for many travelers. At the same time, the lack of a domestic hub for connecting domestic flights to international means that South Korea’s Incheon airport has become a de-facto hub for Japanese travelers heading overseas. Read more

DPJ President Yukio Hatoyama: Japan must shake off US-style globalization

A translation of an opinion piece entitled Japan must shake off US-style globalization by Democratic Party of Japan leader Yukio Hatoyama appears in this week’s edition of the Christian Science Monitor. As Hotoyama is widely expected to be the next Prime Minister of Japan after the results of next Sunday’s election come in, the article offers some important insight into what opinions Hatoyama feels will curry favor with the Japanese public in the run-up to the election.

Hatoyama starts the essay with this: Read more

Is Cool Biz bad for the economy?

A Bloomberg article published today suggests that the government-led “Cool Biz” campaign might actually be bad for the economy. Under the Cool Biz guidelines, the government is recommending that firms set their air conditioners at 28 degrees Celsius during the summer. 28 degrees, of course, is hardly cool. To make up for the higher air conditioner temperatures, workers have been encouraged to go without jackets and ties during the summer months.

In truth, one does see more open necks and more short sleeves and more guys carrying their jackets on the subway, but many firms (and workers) are reluctant to change their dressing habits. Read more

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