Japan’s boom in management buyouts looks set for stricter oversight to protect minority shareholders when companies go private, the Japan Times reported. The Tokyo Stock Exchange will this month consider changes to the Corporate Code of Conduct that would require firms to improve disclosure of assumptions used to calculate the price of buyouts, and to set up a special committee to hear opinions about the proposed deal. The move shines a light on concerns of minority shareholders that have arisen as buyouts in Japan rose to the highest since 2011.

Nissan Motor and Honda Motor have hit a standstill negotiating the terms of a merger, announced less than two months ago, that would have created one of the world’s largest auto groups, the New York Times reported. Before their disclosure in late December that they were exploring combining operations, Nissan and Honda had discussed operating as partners under a holding company.

Underlying inflation in Japan is still slightly below the central bank’s target of 2%, Bank of Japan Gov. Kazuo Ueda said, underlining that it is in no hurry to raise interest rates, the Wall Street Journal reported. “Our goal is to achieve a moderate rise in prices accompanied by solid wage growth,” Ueda told a parliamentary committee on Friday.

The number of foreign workers in Japan reached a new high, underscoring the country’s growing reliance on people from overseas to address its chronic labor shortage, Bloomberg News reported. Japan had a record 2.3 million foreign workers as of October 2024, marking a 12.4% increase from the previous year, according to labor ministry figures released Friday. The number of businesses employing at least one foreign worker also hit a record high of around 342,000, up 7.3% from a year ago, the report showed.

The Bank of Japan raised interest rates on Friday to their highest since the 2008 global financial crisis and revised up its inflation forecasts, underscoring its confidence that rising wages will keep inflation stable around its 2% target, Reuters reported. The decision marks the BOJ's first rate hike since July last year and comes days after the inauguration of U.S. President Donald Trump, who is likely to keep global policymakers vigilant ahead of potential repercussions from threatened higher tariffs.

Japan's service activity expanded for a second straight month in December, buoyed by solid demand and business expansion, a private-sector survey showed on Monday, Reuters reported. The final au Jibun Bank Service purchasing managers' index (PMI) grew to 50.9 in December from 50.5 in November, according to the survey compiled by S&P Global Market Intelligence. It was lower than a flash reading of 51.4 but stayed above the 50.0 threshold separating expansion from contraction for a second straight month.

For all its focus on the newest anime and latest electronics, Tokyo’s Akihabara neighborhood also has a lot of local history. Sadly, a tasty piece of that history is disappearing, with the news that an Akihabara curry restaurant that’s been in business for 50 years will be filing for bankruptcy, Japan Today reported. Bengal was officially founded in 1973 and started serving customers at its Akihabara curry restaurant in 1974, while also operating as a spice wholesaler.

Inflation in Tokyo accelerated for a second month in December while the labor market remained tight, results that largely keep the Bank of Japan on track for an interest rate hike next year, Bloomberg reported. Consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 2.4% in the capital, quickening from growth of 2.2% the previous month, the Ministry of Internal Affairs reported Friday. Tokyo’s figures serve as a leading indicator for national trends.

Japan's factory activity shrank at a slower pace in December as declines in production and new orders eased, a private-sector survey showed on Monday, edging closer to stabilisation after recent falls, Reuters reported. The final au Jibun Bank Japan manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) rose to 49.6 in December, indicating the softest contraction in three months. The index was slightly higher than 49.5 in the flash reading and 49.0 in November but stayed below the 50.0 threshold that separates growth from contraction for the sixth straight month.