Transcript Japan

Japanese Asset Price Bubble
Jerry Chiu
Frank Murguia
Jiehong Kong
Carlos Nuñez
Foundation for Bubble



Japanese industries devastated by WWII
Post WWII policies & tariffs encourage savings by
the population
Results:
Trade surplus
 Yen ( ¥ ) appreciates
 Domestic companies find it easy to obtain money


Japanese products cost less to manufacture
Inflating the Bubble

Opportunity fuels real estate bubble in late
1980s

Similar to current US bubble?
Japanese bubble was centered around commercial
real estate
 US bubble chiefly involved housing

Recipe for Disaster

The Plaza Accord (depreciate USD against ¥
and DM)
Affects exports
 Econ growth 4.4% (1985), 2.9% (1986)


Bank of Japan (BOJ) responds and cuts discount
rate from 5% to 2.5%

Monetary policy provides air for the bubble
Let the Speculation
Begin!
Zenith

Ginza district (Tokyo), prime property values at
USD 139,000 per sq ft

Tokyo Stock Exchange (Nikkei stock
index/Nikkei 225) hits record high ¥38,957.44
in fourth quarter 1989
Downturn

BOJ realizes the bubble and responds by
tightening monetary policy, and from 1989 to
1990 discount rates are increased five times to
cap at 6%

Market collapses shortly afterward as a result of
lack of investor confidence
The Wounded Nikkei

The Japanese stock market index




Peaked at ¥40,000 in 1989
Dropped to below ¥15,000 in 1992
There were periods in the 1990s when it rose in anticipation
that the market would bounce back, but the harsh reality is
that the Nikkei 225 has been in steady decline even to this
day.
Real estate

From 1991 – 1998 property lost 80% of its value
Nikkei 225
Bank Problems




The banking system was heavily regulated, thus considered
institutionally stable
In 1985 the deregulation of interest rates on deposits began.
Prior to that bank were not allowed to pay interest on
deposits
 People invested in the stock market & foreign
investments
Deposit Insurance Corporation, which played a supervisory
role in the economy was mishandled
Confidence/naiveness turned into a liability upon market
collapse
The Hangover


Real GDP (RGDP) would flounder throughout
the 1990s

1990 - ¥428,826 billion (USD 1 trillion)

2000 - ¥469,480 billion (USD 4.66 trillion)
Unemployment
Rose from 2.1 % in 1991 to 4.7 % by year end 2000
 When comparing unemployment to other countries it may
seem low, however, 4.7 % is unheard of in Japan
 Decade earlier unemployment never passed 2.8 %

Japanese GDP
The Lost Decade

Time period where economic growth stopped
Lack of favorable results from fiscal & monetary policies
(to be discussed next)
 Japanese cultural habits of saving and frugality didn’t help
the situation
 Situation persisted until 2003

Liquidity Trap?

Between 1994 and 2000 the government tried to revive
the economy through fiscal policy







1994 - six spending programs totaling ¥ 66 trillion and cut
income tax rates
1998 Q1 – additional tax cuts, this time ¥ 2 trillion
Q2 - fiscal stimulus package worth more than ¥ 16.7 trillion
Q4 – yet another fiscal stimulus package worth ¥ 23.9 trillion
1999 – the government trys throwing ¥ 18 trillion at the
problem with recession recovery
Finally, October 2000, Japan announced yet another fiscal
stimulus package of 11 trillion yen
Results: Total gov’t debt exceeds 100% of GDP
Next Batter

With deflation having gripped the Japanese
economy in the early 1990s, in addition to
the aforementioned fiscal policy, monetary
options were exercised.

2001 – Central Bank attempts to use its
muscle and stop deflation by reducing
interest rates


Interest rates are pushed down to near zero for a
substantial period of time with no favorable results
2009 Japan still has low interest rates and the Nikkei
continues to drop
This Decade

After years of give-and-take GDP growth, 2003 appeared to be
the turn around point

Junichiro Koizumi





Privatize government agencies
Cut wasteful programs
Control country’s budgets
Develop a plan to get Japan out from the mountain of debt
Results:


Japan saw consecutive growth for first time since 1997
Ultimately situation still worsened but at a slower rate.
Recent Times

Hard won gains, wiped out

Rise in commodities hurt economy (07-08)

Global recession has slowed world-wide demand for
goods

The Bank of Japan suffered a net loss of ¥12.1 billion
since September, a departure from the ¥456.4 billion in
gains made a year earlier, culprit to blame were foreign
exchange losses caused by the yen's appreciation and a
decline in dividends on shares purchased by the BOJ
from major banks
Statement of Monetary
Policy


Nov 20, 2009 release – Boring!!!
October 30, 2009

overnight call rate to remain at around 0.1 %

temporary measures, such as purchase of CP and corporate
bonds

temporary special funds-supplying operations to facilitate
corporate financing

Expansion in the range of corporate debt and asset-backed
commercial paper eligible as collateral

complementary deposit facility to provide ample funds
sufficient to meet liquidity demand in financial markets.
GDP Comparison of Select
G8
Nikkei vs DJI (Jan 85 – Nov 09)
Nikkei 225
Dow Jones
Industrial
質問か。
Questions?