JBIC and Japan's three megabanks signed $2.221 billion in loans for the first three projects of a $550 billion US investment ceiling, the price Tokyo paid to bring Trump's tariffs down to 15%. The deal, the dollar-funding crunch, and what changed when the Supreme Court ruled IEEPA tariffs unlawful in February 2026.
SoftBank Group plans to spin off and list 'Roze,' an AI and robotics company, on US markets at a target valuation of $100 billion. We unpack Masayoshi Son's strategy in the context of Stargate, his OpenAI commitments, how Japanese tech compares to US and Chinese giants, and the Middle East risk hanging over the timing.
Oriental Land Company, operator of Tokyo Disney Resort, posted record revenue of 704.5 billion yen ($4.4 billion) for fiscal 2026, yet operating profit fell, and the stock has been cut nearly in half since 2023, hitting a fresh year-low days before the earnings release. Here is what is making investors nervous about the 'house of mouse' in Japan, from shrinking margins and demographic headwinds to a 330 billion yen cruise gamble.
Mitsubishi Electric is in talks to transfer 50% of its $4.3B auto parts subsidiary to Taiwan's Foxconn, with a deal expected by May. As BYD captures 19% of the global EV market, how is Japan's auto supply chain being reshaped?
On April 25, 2026, Denso announced plans to withdraw its $8.2 billion acquisition proposal for Rohm. Rohm chose the three-way alliance with Toshiba and Mitsubishi Electric, while Denso pivots to actively explore partnerships with third parties. We analyze the conclusion of Japan's 50-day power semiconductor reshuffle and what's next for Toyota Group's chip in-house strategy.
On April 23, 2026, the Nikkei 225 crossed 60,000 intraday for the first time in history. We compare this milestone with the 1989 bubble peak at 38,915 yen, examining USD-based performance, the foreign ownership shift from 5% to 32.4%, the PER drop from 60x to 16x, and the heavy concentration in just a handful of AI and semiconductor stocks like SoftBank Group, which surged 9.6%.
Japan's government blocked Korean PE firm MBK Partners' $1.7 billion takeover of Makino Milling Machine, the first-ever stop order under the revised FEFTA since 2017. Why did a non-classified machine tool maker trigger national security alarms? We break down both sides of the overreach-versus-reasonable debate.
Three weeks after the March 27 three-way merger announcement, Japan's power semiconductor reshuffle has accelerated. Denso declared its semiconductor-maker ambitions in CORE 2030, Rohm's CEO asserted leadership, Toshiba eyes re-listing, and Mitsubishi Electric opened a new Fukuoka plant. A timeline update.
Food tech is one of 17 pillars in Japan's new national growth strategy under the Takaichi administration, with a 30% global market share target by 2040. Beyond the obvious giants like Maruha Nichiro, Nissin, and Kikkoman, this deep dive spotlights 5 lesser-known but high-potential players: Regional Fish (gene-edited seafood), FRD Japan (closed-loop salmon), Chitose Bio Evolution (algae unicorn), UMITRON (aquaculture AI), and Oishii Farm (NY strawberry factory).
BlackRock, managing $14 trillion in assets, has taken a 5.28% stake in Komeda Holdings, the Nagoya-born coffee chain. Even in the AI era, people don't stop drinking coffee. We unpack why the world's largest asset manager is betting on Japan's food industry, looking at Komeda's unique franchise model and its global expansion story.
On April 16, 2026, the Nikkei 225 closed at an all-time high of 59,518, up 1,384 points. We break down the structural drivers: US-Iran peace hopes, S&P 500 crossing 7,000, BOJ April rate-hike odds collapsing from 55% to 30% after Finance Minister Katayama's rebuke, USD/JPY at 158, and a 16.5% surge from end-March. Plus the simultaneous rally in tech and regional bank stocks, DAX comparison, and the April foreign-flow anomaly.