http://www.japaneconomynews.com News and Reports on the State of Japan's Economy - With Links to Sundry Resources Tue, 16 Mar 2010 20:10:09 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en According to data released yesterday by the Cabinet Office, Japan's Consumer Confidence Index rose by 0.8 points to 39.8 in February, showing an increase for the second consecutive month. The last time the Consumer Confidence Index showed an increase for two months in a row was in August 2009, when ... http://www.japaneconomynews.com/2010/03/16/japan-consumer-confidence-rises-for-second-straight-month-in-february/ According to a report released Wednesday by the Japan Center for Economic Research, Japan's GDP fell by 0.3% in January compared to the previous month, showing a decline for the first time in two months. January's figures contrast the 0.3% increase seen in December. http://www.japaneconomynews.com/2010/03/07/japans-gdp-down-03-in-january/ According to data released Friday by the Cabinet Office, Japan’s Consumer Confidence Index rose to 39.0 in January, up from 37.6 in in December. January's rise, however, did not make up for the drop seen in December, as the index remained below the 39.5 level seen in November 2009. The consumer ... http://www.japaneconomynews.com/2010/02/14/consumer-confidence-index-inches-up-in-january/ The Nikkei certainly isn't mincing words when it comes to describing the state of Japan's department store industry. In an article entitled "More Devastation Awaits Dept Stores In '10," the paper made its case for why the department store industry might see a record number of closures over the coming ... http://www.japaneconomynews.com/2010/02/10/nikkei-devastation-awaits-department-stores-in-2010/ For an absolutely awesome writeup on the history of department stores in Kyoto, check out Roy Berman's recent post "The history of department stores in Kyoto, and Kyoto in the history of the department store" at the Mutantfrog Travelogue. http://www.japaneconomynews.com/2010/02/05/mutantfrog-the-history-of-department-stores-in-kyoto/ On Tuesday, the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare released its figures on wages for December 2009 and for 2009 as a whole. First, taking a look at the December figures, we see a fall of 6.1% in wages at firms with at least five employees against a year ago, ... http://www.japaneconomynews.com/2010/02/04/japanese-wages-continue-freefall/ 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 ... http://www.japaneconomynews.com/2009/12/30/hatoyama-lays-out-growth-strategy/ 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 ... http://www.japaneconomynews.com/2009/12/16/mfsspp1-changing-lanes/ According to Tuesday morning's Nikkei, Japan's nonfinancial listed firms earned greater sales from Asian markets than from the US for the first time ever in the six months to September 30. Let's take a look at what they mean by "earnings growth." It's helpful to look into the factors behind the ... http://www.japaneconomynews.com/2009/12/15/japan-nonfinancial-listed-asia-sales/ It has been projected that in 2009, Japan's housing starts will fall below the one million mark for the first time in 42 years. In response to this, and in a seeming attempt to spur economic recovery, the government has revealed plans to roll out a mortgage-reduction program for 2010. ... http://www.japaneconomynews.com/2009/12/06/government-mortgage-discounts/