November 2019

29Nov

The Effect of Aging on the Age-wage Profile

By Toshikatsu Inoue Despite its importance, many macroeconomic models do not capture the changes in the age-wage profile over time. The flattening of the age-wage profile in Japan and the relative increase in the aging workforce suggests the existence of demand law in relative labor inputs and wages of each age, which is abstracted from the standard macroeconomic model. In this study, we build a model using the aggregate production function that creates a downward slope labor demand curve....

November 29, 2019
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28Nov

Japanese gov’t may include more part-time workers in pension system

The Japanese government may look to include more part-time workers into the national employee pension system by mandating companies with relatively small workforces to enroll in the program, local media reported Wednesday. Under the current system, firms employing more than 501 staff are required to participate in the program. However, the government is mulling lowering the figure to increase the number of workers enrolled in the employee pension program. In a bid to address concerns among workers about having...

November 28, 2019
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21Nov

World’s Largest Pension Fund Keeps Analysts in Dark on Portfolio

Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund’s decision to not disclose details of its quarterly allocation breakdown has some analysts saying that the world’s biggest pension fund is backtracking on transparency. Read also Impact investing is about more than saving the world In a statement on Nov. 1, GPIF President Norihiro Takahashi said the fund won’t disclose the allocation breakdown, amounts and investment income for each asset class this fiscal year, as it reviews the composition of its basic portfolio, which totals...

November 21, 2019
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05Nov

In Japan’s ageing society, elderly are determined to resist the push towards cashless payments

Tokyo wants to double the ratio of cashless settlements to 40 per cent by 2025 and to 80 per cent eventually to spur labour productivity However, Japanese households hold more than half of their assets in cash and deposits and that proportion rises with the elderly Cash is king in Japan, and more so for the country’s rapidly ageing population who are still deeply reluctant to give it up. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s push to make more Japanese –...

November 5, 2019
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October 2019

30Oct

Can migrants, robots and retirees help to combat the demographic crisis in an ageing Japan?

Turning 100 is no longer a novelty in Japan. Itsuko Inoue recently celebrated her 100th birthday, joining the ranks of Japan’s 71,000 centenarians. A native of Tokyo, Inoue survived both the earthquake of 1923 and the Second World War before going on to have five daughters. She will soon receive a certificate from Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare, which is responsible for congratulating the new centenarians who grow in number every year. Read also What Is The...

October 30, 2019
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22Oct

Japan. No excuse for inaction on pension reforms

In Japan, which faces an accelerated aging of the population with ever fewer births, a vague sense of anxiety over the public pension system is spreading. Generally speaking, future pension finance greatly fluctuates depending on demographic composition and changes in socio-economic conditions. Accordingly, the government examines the health of pension finance every five years to assess its condition. The result of the latest checkup, disclosed at the end of August, shows that the level of pension benefits about 20...

October 22, 2019
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14Oct

AfDB, Japan to promote sustainability bond markets in Africa

The African Development Bank and Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) have signed a partnership to promote environmental, social and governance investments in the global capital markets. Read also Kenya. Pensions uptake low as returns increase In a statement the Bank noted that the collaboration between the Bank and GPIF will focus on channelling investments towards inclusive and sustainable growth in Africa, contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. Read also Pension schemes to benefit from PE investment guide...

October 14, 2019
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02Oct

Japan. World’s Largest Pension Fund Reappoints Mizuno as CIO

Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund reappointed Hiromichi Mizuno as its investment chief overseeing $1.47 trillion in assets. Mizuno, whose term was extended to March 31 after expiring Monday, captained sweeping changes to the investment strategy of the world’s largest pension fund over the past five years. He became the GPIF’s first chief investment officer in January 2015, managing the fund’s shift to stocks from domestic debt, while advocating assets that incorporate environmental, social and governance factors. The fund will...

October 2, 2019
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September 2019

30Sep

Japan’s public pension fund to hike investment in foreign bonds

Japan's Government Pension Investment Fund plans to expand its investment in foreign bonds. The move has been prompted by increased difficulty in managing funds in Japanese government bonds due to the Bank of Japan's negative interest rate policy. The expected increase in foreign-bond buying by one of the world's largest institutional investors may impact the foreign exchange market. The GPIF wants to change its asset management plan so that it can treat foreign bonds as domestic bonds if they...

September 30, 2019
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27Sep

Corporate Governance and Value Creation in Japan: Prescriptions for Boosting Roe

By Ryohei Yanagi This is the first book to furnish a root cause of the low valuation of Japanese listed companies by using, as qualitative evidence, unique global investor surveys, which are rarely available for Japanese companies. Also contained in this book as quantitative evidence is empirical research with regression analysis implying a positive correlation between corporate governance and value creation in Japan. The author explains the rationale underlying the suggestion of the Ito Review on return on equity...

September 27, 2019
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