| BUSINESSWEEK ONLINE : MARCH 1, 1999 ISSUE | ||||||||
| ||||||||
 | ||||||||
| INTERNATIONAL BUSINESS
Japan Flip-Flops on Bonds DEC. 21 Government announces plans to issue $600 billion of bonds in FY 1999, up 24% from last year. DEC. 21 Finance Ministry says it will stop buying bonds in the market. Yields soar. JAN. 29 U.S. Treasury Secretary Rubin urges Japan to use ''all possible'' tools to kick-start its economy. FEB. 10 Government spokesman Hiromu Nonaka urges U.S. to consider buying government bonds to help Japan, as Japan did for the U.S. in the1980s. FEB. 12 Bank of Japan cuts overnight lending rates to 0.15% from 0.25% and promises to expand the money supply. But bond yields jump 60 basis points, to 2.1%, and the stock market droops. FEB. 16 Finance Ministry makes an about-face and commits to buy $3.4 billion of bonds through March. The bond market, stock market, and dollar soar. DATA: BUSINESS WEEK _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ |
|  |
 | |
Return to main story
INTERACT E-Mail to Business Week Online | |||
