Japan

Japan's household spending rose at a double-digit rate in May as consumers bought cars and mobile phones, though the pace of growth slowed from the prior month as a new wave of COVID-19 infections weighed on consumer confidence, Reuters reported. Japan's economy is struggling to shake off the drag from the coronavirus pandemic after the government put in place "quasi-emergency" measures in Tokyo and other major areas to curb a resurgence of infections. Household spending grew 11.6% year-on-year in May, the third month of gains, after a 13.0% rise in April, government data showed on Tuesday.

Japan cleared the way for holding the Summer Olympics on schedule by setting an end to its state of emergency and lifting vaccinations to about a million shots a day, the Wall Street Journal reported. Thursday’s developments, combined with falling Covid-19 infection numbers and rising public support for the Games, make it highly likely that the Olympics will start in Tokyo on July 23 as scheduled, barring a last-minute surprise such as a renewed coronavirus wave.

Brazilian metropolitan rail company Supervia filed for bankruptcy protection on Monday, the company said, as traffic was sharply hit by the COVID-19 pandemic, Reuters reported. The company, controlled by a Japanese group that includes a subsidiary of Mitsui & Co 8031.T and West Japan Railway Co 9021.T, will restructure 1.2 billion reais ($237.4 million) in debt. Before the pandemic, Supervia, which operates in Rio de Janeiro metropolitan area, had around 600,000 passengers a day but now the number has dropped to 300,000.

Japan extended a coronavirus state of emergency in Tokyo and other areas for 20 more days on Friday, with infections still not slowing as it prepares to host the Olympics in just over 50 days, the Associated Press reported. Cases remain high and medical systems in Osaka, the hardest-hit area in western Japan, are still overburdened, Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said in announcing the decision. “I am aware that many people are voicing concern about holding the Olympics and Paralympics,” he said.

The trustee presiding over the Mt. Gox civil rehabilitation case has taken the next step toward partially reimbursing victims who lost money to the cryptocurrency exchange in hacks that date back nearly a decade. As of today, claimants can begin to vote on whether or not they will accept the civil rehabilitation proposal, Coin Desk reported. The deadline for claimants to cast their vote online is Oct. 8.

New figures reveal that 1,500 companies in Japan have gone under due to the coronavirus pandemic since February of last year, NHKNews reported. Credit research firm Teikoku Databank says the businesses have either already declared bankruptcy, or closed down to prepare for liquidation proceedings. The dining industry has been the hardest-hit, with 250 businesses failing. It is followed by construction with 140, and accommodation with 89. Monthly totals have been rising since January. That's when the second coronavirus state of emergency started for the Greater Tokyo Area.

The Tokyo Olympics, postponed in 2020 during the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, are facing increasing hurdles in putting on a 2021 show, CNN.com reported. The latest troubling sign for the Summer Games came on Monday when the State Department advised U.S. citizens against traveling to Japan because of a sharp increase in Covid-19 cases. The "Level 4: Do Not Travel" advisory is the highest cautionary level in the department's hierarchy of warnings. It's been more than a year since Americans have paid tourist calls to the nation. Japan has been closed to U.S.

The global surge in commodities prices has now made Japan's decades-old fight against its "deflationary mindset" even more critical as businesses in the world's third-largest economy's struggle to break even, Reuters reported. Japanese firms' aversion to passing on higher prices has made it hard to raise wages for fear of being saddled with high fixed costs, which in turn feeds deflationary pressures.

Nomura Holdings Inc. announced business partnerships at home, Australia and New Zealand as Japan’s biggest brokerage seeks to move past a $2.9 billion hit from the implosion of Archegos Capital Management, Bloomberg News reported. Nomura signed an agreement with three regional Japanese banks to set up a joint venture to provide remote financial consulting services. It also struck up an alliance with investment bank Jarden Securities Ltd. to provide services such as stock and bond underwriting for clients in Australia and New Zealand, it said in separate statements on Monday.