The Bank of Japan is expected to cut interest rates after the government urged more support the ailing economy.
Investors saw a 40% chance that the policy board will reduce the overnight call rate from 0.3% at this week’s meeting, according to calculations made by JP Morgan Chase & Co. based on interest-rate swaps trading, up from 20% earlier in the day.
The meeting ends today (Dec. 19th, 2008)
Popularity: 42% [?]
The rally in U.S. Treasuries that pushed yields on T bills below 0% this week is adding to concerns that the US$5.3 T market for government debt is a bubble waiting for a pin.
Investors seeking safety from losses in equity and credit markets charged the Treasury 0% interest when the government sold US$30 billion of four-week bills on Dec. 9, the same day three-month T bill rates turned negative for the first time since the US began selling the debt in 1929. Yields on two- 10- and 30-year securities also touched record lows this month.
Popularity: 70% [?]
China’s government announced plans today for an estimated $585 billion in spending and stimulus measures to shore up its weakening economy and counter the effects of the global financial crisis. The massive stimulus plan would include tax cuts, a loosening of credit and government spending on a wide range of projects, including construction of low-income housing, transportation systems and the development of rural infrastructure,
Popularity: unranked [?]
