{"title":"Stock market response to public investment under the zero lower bound: Cross-industry evidence from Japan","authors":"Tomomi Miyazaki , Kazuki Hiraga , Masafumi Kozuka","doi":"10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101302","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101302","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This study examines the effects of public investment on the stock market between the zero lower bound (ZLB) and the non-ZLB periods using Japanese sectoral panel data. The empirical results first show that while public investment shocks have stimulating effects on stock returns during the ZLB period, this is not the case outside of the ZLB. Furthermore, the impulse responses for the manufacturing industry are estimated to be positive and significant regardless of model specification. Our results suggest that the government is recommended to increase public investment under the ZLB to prop up the stock market but cut back once the economy is no longer in a liquidity trap.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":47082,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the Japanese and International Economies","volume":"71 ","pages":"Article 101302"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2023-12-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138823982","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Worker flows by gender and industry in Japan","authors":"Tetsuaki Takano","doi":"10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101301","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101301","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>After the late 2000s, there were substantial fluctuations in unemployment during the Global Financial Crisis (GFC), Abenomics, and COVID-19 crisis, and their impact was uneven by gender and industry. This study examines the property of worker flows in Japan by focusing on gender and industry perspectives using monthly data from the Labour Force Survey. During the COVID-19 crisis, the transition probability from employment to inactivity rose sharply compared to the period of the GFC, mainly driven by women in the service sectors. The contribution of inflows to the dynamics of unemployment was on the rise for both men and women until around 2018, and the decreased unemployment rate during Abenomics can be accounted for by the decline in separation rates.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":47082,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the Japanese and International Economies","volume":"71 ","pages":"Article 101301"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2023-12-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138716742","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Assessing monetary policy surprises in Japan by high frequency identification","authors":"Fumitaka Nakamura , Nao Sudo , Yu Sugisaki","doi":"10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101300","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101300","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p><span>The use of changes in short-term interest rates<span> (STIRs) within 30 min before and after monetary policy announcements, or so-called high-frequency identification (HFI), has been attracting attention as a method of extracting monetary policy surprises. In this paper, we use the Japanese data during the 2000s and 2010s, which includes periods when interest rates hovered around the ELB, to construct an indicator of monetary policy surprises using HFI and document its properties. We find that the </span></span>STIR futures<span> variations within 30 min around monetary policy announcements are more closely correlated with key financial variables than those outside that window. We also find that the impulse responses of macroeconomic variables to the identified shocks are overall in line with what conventional theory predicts.</span></p></div>","PeriodicalId":47082,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the Japanese and International Economies","volume":"71 ","pages":"Article 101300"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2023-12-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138493097","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Tackling the risks in crypto: Choosing among bans, containment and regulation","authors":"Matteo Aquilina , Jon Frost , Andreas Schrimpf","doi":"10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101286","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101286","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>The high-profile failures of a number of crypto firms have re-ignited the debate on the appropriate policy response to address the risks in crypto. The “shadow financial” functions enabled by crypto markets share many of the vulnerabilities of traditional finance and risks are often exacerbated by specific features of crypto. Authorities may consider different, and not mutually exclusive, lines of action to tackle the risks in crypto. These include (i) bans, which could tackle specific aspects of the crypto ecosystem, (ii) containment so that the real economy is insulated from crypto risks, and (iii) the regulation of the crypto sector. The paper highlights the pros and cons of the different approaches and proposes a framework to choose when bans, containment and regulation are most appropriate. It also describes the approach taken in Japan, which has been a pioneer in tacking such risks. With each approach, central banks and public authorities can also work to make traditional financial more attractive, thereby allowing responsible innovation to thrive.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":47082,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the Japanese and International Economies","volume":"71 ","pages":"Article 101286"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2023-11-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138403679","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Hong Cheng , Hanbing Fan , Takeo Hoshi , Dezhuang Hu
{"title":"State ownership, political connection, and innovation subsidies in China","authors":"Hong Cheng , Hanbing Fan , Takeo Hoshi , Dezhuang Hu","doi":"10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101287","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101287","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>We examine how a firm's political connection measured by the membership of its CEO in the People's Congress (PC) or Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) influences its likelihood of receiving the innovation subsidies given by the state. We find that politically connected firms are more likely to receive innovation subsidies. The political connection measured in this way is found much more important than state ownership in explaining the allocation of innovation subsidies. We also investigate if the firms that receive innovation subsidies are more innovative, productive, or profitable. Our results show that the firms that receive innovation subsidies file and receive more patents, but that their patents are not necessarily of high quality. They do not have higher productivity or profitability, either. The results collectively suggest politically induced inefficiency in the allocation of innovation subsidies in China.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":47082,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the Japanese and International Economies","volume":"71 ","pages":"Article 101287"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2023-11-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138355980","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Potential benefits and determinants of remote work during the COVID-19 pandemic: Evidence from Japanese Household Panel Data","authors":"Kayoko Ishii , Isamu Yamamoto , Mao Nakayama","doi":"10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101285","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101285","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This study examines the impact of remote work on subjective well-being, such as subjective productivity, work engagement, and health condition, during the COVID-19 pandemic. It also identifies the characteristics of workers and jobs that contribute to the continuous implementation of remote work, using data from the “Japan Household Panel Survey (JHPS)” and “JHPS Special Survey for COVID-19 (Waves 1 and 2).” As for the characteristics of remote work, multinomial logit models indicate that remote work tends to be continuously conducted in workplaces where performance rather than hours worked is valued, flexible work arrangements are allowed, and better management practices are conducted. In addition, workers with better IT skills, those exposed to new technologies, and those engaged in abstract tasks are more likely to work remotely after the state of emergency. Regarding the impact of remote work, we conjecture that the exogenous shift to remote work due to the pandemic had a heterogeneous impact on workers. The first difference models, where unobservable time-invariant worker heterogeneity has been removed, indicate a positive impact on subjective well-being for those who continued to work remotely after the state of emergency was lifted in 2020. Those who only worked remotely as a stopgap measure during the first state of emergency experienced negative impacts of remote work.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":47082,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the Japanese and International Economies","volume":"70 ","pages":"Article 101285"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2023-09-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49722089","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Domestic and international effects of economic policy uncertainty on corporate investment and strategic cash holdings: Evidence from Japan","authors":"Ryosuke Fujitani , Masazumi Hattori , Yukihiro Yasuda","doi":"10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101272","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101272","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>We empirically examine the effects of economic policy uncertainty (EPU) of which measurement methodology Baker, Bloom & Davis (2016) propose on the investment and cash holding behaviors of Japanese firms. We also examine spillover effects of EPU of the United States on them. We find that Japanese firms invest less and accumulate more cash when domestic EPU increases. Impacts of subcategories of domestic EPU differs: the uncertainty of fiscal and exchange rate policies are the key drivers of the negative impacts on corporate investment although the predictive power for investment of economic policy uncertainty of exchange rate holds only in the short run. As for the international spillover, we find that economic policy uncertainty in the United States has negative spillover (contagion) effects on corporate investment in Japan. Our findings suggest that Japanese managers become more cautious in making investment decisions as a response not only to higher domestic EPU but also US EPU.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":47082,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the Japanese and International Economies","volume":"69 ","pages":"Article 101272"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49720680","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A field experiment on discrimination against foreigners in the rental housing market in Japan examining the 23 wards of Tokyo","authors":"Takeru Sugasawa , Kei Harano","doi":"10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101273","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101273","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>Discrimination against foreigners in rental housing markets has been recognized mainly in the U.S. and European countries. In Japan, the difficulties experienced by foreigners who move into rental housing have been reported only by media or government questionnaire surveys, and there is little quantitative evidence. We conduct a correspondence study to observe discrimination against foreigners in rental housing markets in Tokyo's 23 wards during December 2019 and February 2020. Our results show that those who use a Chinese or Korean name decrease their probability of receiving affirmative responses to rental applications by approximately 13% compared with those who use Japanese names. Additionally, we find that the COVID-19 crisis increased the discriminatory behavior of rental housing owners and realtors.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":47082,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the Japanese and International Economies","volume":"69 ","pages":"Article 101273"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49720635","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Enrique Alberola , Gong Cheng , Andrea Consiglio , Stavros A. Zenios
{"title":"Unconventional monetary policy and debt sustainability in Japan","authors":"Enrique Alberola , Gong Cheng , Andrea Consiglio , Stavros A. Zenios","doi":"10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101274","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101274","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>We adapt to the Japanese case a model of stochastic debt sustainability within a monetary policymaking framework. The model incorporates the effects of unconventional monetary policy<span> and its potential unwinding on sovereign debt dynamics. A scenario tree represents stochastic and correlated macroeconomic and fiscal variables, and a coherent risk measure allows to draw probabilistic inferences on sustainability. We calibrate the model to the Quantitative and Qualitative Easing (QQE) that Bank of Japan launched in 2013. Using a retrospective analysis, we find a large favourable effect of the QQE on sovereign debt dynamics. Forward-looking simulations under different exit strategies show that the termination and unwinding of the QQE could raise debt sustainability concerns. A sharp tightening of global financial conditions could have a similar negative impact on debt dynamics, requiring a fiscal adjustment to keep debt sustainable.</span></p></div>","PeriodicalId":47082,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the Japanese and International Economies","volume":"69 ","pages":"Article 101274"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49720577","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Aging and the real interest rate in Japan: A labor market channel","authors":"Shigeru Fujita , Ippei Fujiwara","doi":"10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101262","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jjie.2023.101262","url":null,"abstract":"<div><p>This paper explores a causal link between aging of the labor force and the declining trend in the real interest rate in Japan. We develop a search and matching model that features heterogeneous workers with respect to their ages and firm-specific skills. Using the model, we examine the long-run implications of the sharp drop in labor force entry in the 1970s. We show that the changes in the demographic structure induce significant low-frequency movements in per capita consumption growth and thus the real interest rate. The model suggests that aging of the labor force caused the real interest rate to decline by 1 percentage point between 1980 and 2010 in Japan.</p></div>","PeriodicalId":47082,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the Japanese and International Economies","volume":"69 ","pages":"Article 101262"},"PeriodicalIF":2.9,"publicationDate":"2023-09-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"49720677","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"经济学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}