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• Kyodo News headline: BOJ gov. candidate seeks monetary policy regime change
• Spain – PM releases his tax returns & bad bank news
• Ireland -protest nationwide against austerity
• Some weekend background reading
• Recap of Aso’s Friday comments
• Japan: Bi-partisan support to reduce BOJ independence
• “Tokyo Big Explosion” … No, its not what you think
• Bank of England to cut growth forecast this week
• German press – Former Greek PM Simitis says Greece will need another debt restructuring
• German government minister resigns
• Amari on Sarurday: “We want to continue taking (new) steps to help stock prices rise”
• Carney still winning positive reviews from

Kyodo News headline: BOJ gov. candidate seeks monetary policy regime change Posted: 09 Feb 2013 04:33 PM PST Just a headline at this stage.

Spain – PM releases his tax returns & bad bank news Posted: 09 Feb 2013 04:27 PM PST Spain’s prime minister published his tax returns on Saturday in a bid to quell reports he and other conservative politicians received secret cash payments but the opposition said many questions remain unanswered. Last weekend the news out of Spain was held partially responsible for some early-week jitters in the Euro. The issue hasn’t gone away. Spanish PM publishes tax returns amid kickbacks scandal Also: Spain’s so-called ‘bad bank’, Sareb, has rejected overtures from investment funds Cerebrus, Fortress and Centerbridge to enter into its capital because they were asking for advantages over other shareholders, a source with knowledge of the matter said on Saturday. “They asked for privileges when it came to buying the assets, and Sareb rejected that offer,” the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity said. “Sareb has a commitment to treat all shareholders the same.” Spain’s “bad bank” rebuffs three investment funds And a real quickie from Bloomberg: Bank of Spain's Linde Says Bank Restructuring Is on Track

Ireland -protest nationwide against austerity Posted: 09 Feb 2013 04:23 PM PST Tens of thousands of people marched in six cities around Ireland on Saturday to protest against austerity measures, days after the government struck a vital deal on its bank debt. Ireland’s bank debt deal, announced last week, saw the cost of bailing out Anglo Irish stretched out over 40 years rather than 10, cutting Ireland’s borrowing needs by 20 billion euros over the next decade. There’s still a long way to go. Irish marchers protest nationwide against austerity

Some weekend background reading Posted: 09 Feb 2013 03:38 PM PST This article is from February 5 – so it isn’t new. It is good background material, with some material from Nomura’s Richard Koo: One reason why the global economy managed to avoid a depression after the events of 2008 was that the Aso government and Finance Minister Hirohisa Fujii, a member of the DPJ cabinet that followed, were willing to accept a strong currency despite the resulting pain for Japanese industry because they had learned the lesson from the 1930s that trade surplus nations must not engage in certain actions during a global economic crisis. Unfortunately, western politicians and media remain largely ignorant of the fact that Japan's sacrifice prevented a repeat of the global economic tragedy of the 1930s. Japan's efforts in this regard have been taken for granted, and now some are even claiming the Abe administration has started a currency war. - The article is also useful in its emphasis on how the April 4 meeting of the BOJ has taken on much more importance. All's fair in love and currency wars  (May be gated) Also, the link to Richard Koo’s full report (from the FT article).

Recap of Aso’s Friday comments Posted: 09 Feb 2013 03:09 PM PST Speaking of fireworks, this Aso chap is good value, isn’t he? The pace of the yen's weakening has been too swift, Finance Minister Taro Aso said, speaking a week before a meeting of global finance chiefs at which Japan's currency policy is expected to come under the microscope… Tokyo is trying to deflect criticism that it is securing an unfair trade advantage by driving down the yen. Yen's decline too fast, Aso says ahead of G-20 meet

Japan: Bi-partisan support to reduce BOJ independence Posted: 09 Feb 2013 03:06 PM PST "The 1998 BOJ Law gave the central bank too much independence and freedom, which caused prolonged deflation," said opposition Your Party leader Yoshimi Watanabe, who launched the bipartisan group with Kozo Yamamoto of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, Sakihito Ozawa of Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Restoration Party) and Yoichi Masuzoe of the Japan Renaissance Party. The article is from Friday, so its not new news, but is an interesting article. The group aims to revise the BOJ law to shift more responsibility to the central bank for the impact of its monetary policy. Under the current BOJ Law, both chambers have to approve the governor's nomination but they effectively can't dismiss whoever is installed. "Senior LDP lawmakers will not agree to the proposal if the amendment enables the Diet to sack the BOJ governor," said Yamamoto of the LDP Lawmakers huddle on revising law to lessen BOJ's independence

“Tokyo Big Explosion” … No, its not what you think Posted: 09 Feb 2013 03:00 PM PST BEIJING—A successful new brand of firework named “Tokyo Big Explosion” is being pulled from store shelves here by authorities who apparently fear such jingoism could fuel criticism abroad of Chinese nationalism. There are still plenty of other fireworks for sale: A firework named “I Love Diaoyu” remains on sale. Other options include “Ultraman,” “Aircraft Carrier that Boosts National Prestige,” and “Beijing Style,” a play on the title of a popular South Korean music track named “Gangnam Style,” by singer Psy. China bans fireworks named ‘Tokyo Big Explosion’

Bank of England to cut growth forecast this week Posted: 09 Feb 2013 02:55 PM PST The Telegraph: The Bank of England will cut its growth forecasts this week and warn that the squeeze on family finances will last longer than expected in a prediction likely to douse recent hopes that the UK was heading back to recovery.

German press – Former Greek PM Simitis says Greece will need another debt restructuring Posted: 09 Feb 2013 02:53 PM PST In an interview with German newspaper Handelsblatt published on Saturday, Simitis said that since Greek public debt would be at 124 percent of GDP in 2020, another restructuring would be needed. If the market pays attention to the comments of an ex-PM, this is unlikely to be viewed as Euro positive. Kathimerini

German government minister resigns Posted: 09 Feb 2013 02:48 PM PST Education Minister Annette Schavan resigned amidst academic plagiarism charges. The resignation is unlikely to have an impact on Merkel’s re-election chances in September: Schavan’s departure is unlikely to weaken Merkel’s chances to win a third term in elections on September 22. Reuters Bloomberg

Amari on Sarurday: “We want to continue taking (new) steps to help stock prices rise” Posted: 09 Feb 2013 02:40 PM PST Reported in the Japanese Press. Economic and fiscal policy minister Akira Amari said Saturday the government will step up economic recovery efforts so that the benchmark Nikkei index jumps an additional 17 percent to 13,000 points by the end of March.

Carney still winning positive reviews from Posted: 09 Feb 2013 01:55 PM PST Good start Mr Carney, but we're still in a mess Not sure this Telegraph story adds much to the discussion but central bank sure is a popular subject in England. I've known this charming 47-year-old Canadian since the early 1990s – when we were both studying for an advanced economics degree at Oxford. Even then, among a ridiculously high-powered year group, he stood out as one of those rare characters who combines a first-rate intellect with excellent "people skills".

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