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Barclays Plc became the latest European bank to kick off a yen bond deal on Tuesday after HSBC Holdings Plc and BNP Paribas SA tapped yen investors in the past month for low-cost funding. HSBC sold 160 billion yen ($1.44 billion) in yen bonds earlier this month that may count toward total loss-absorbing capacity, or TLAC, buffer requirements, which were introduced after the global financial crisis. [Extracted from the article]

The Tokyo-based lenders may "suffer from rising price risks on foreign bond holdings" due to higher U.S. Treasury yields, Bloomberg Intelligence senior industry analyst Francis Chan wrote in a note. MUFG, which has the most foreign bonds among Japanese banks, cut its holdings by about 2.4 trillion yen in the three months ended March. [Extracted from the article]

Takeda's "Scary" Debt for Shire Deal Fuels Credit Market Concern Japan's biggest-ever acquisition may come at a steep cost for Takeda Pharmaceutical Co.'s financial health. The Japanese drug maker secured a bridge loan facility of about $31 billion to help pay for its purchase of Shire Plc, in what likely is the largest borrowing ever by a Japanese company for an acquisition. [Extracted from the article]

Could let BOJ make 2% inflation target less binding: Kiuchi The Bank of Japan will likely find it easier to make its inflation target less binding if recent scandals throw Prime Minister Shinzo Abe from power, according to Takahide Kiuchi, a former board member at the central bank. [Extracted from the article]

Firm may need to cancel debt guarantees to list unit: JCR Debt holders could still count on funds from more than 17 trillion yen in stock investments held by SoftBank if the guarantees are removed, so any gains in yield premiums may be limited, Uomoto said. [Extracted from the article]

Borrowers lock in lowest dollar bond financing costs in decade Companies and government entities issued an unprecedented $86.7 billion of foreign-currency notes last year, up 21.4 percent from 2016, as firms including SoftBank Group Corp. and Asahi Group Holdings Ltd. tapped debt financing to expand overseas. [Extracted from the article]

Nation's sovereign credit-default swaps rise to 15-month high The credit assessor changed its outlook on Japan's sovereign rating to negative from stable in June last year after the government delayed a tax hike. [Extracted from the article]

Mizuho set up a financial institutions bond team in London Mizuho wants to boost cross-border deals, whether it is Asian deals in the dollar market, U.S. corporate transactions in Europe or bond sales by overseas entities in Japan or Australian, said Kanamori. [Extracted from the article]

Loan balances at Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. and its four so-called city bank peers fell by 0.1 percent from a year earlier to 190.5 trillion yen ($1.75 trillion) as of March 31, the first decline in six years, data from the Japanese Bankers Association show. Banks make an average of a 24 basis-point margin between the interest they pay on deposits and receive on loans, according to the Japanese Bankers Association. [Extracted from the article]

Even though the odds of Toshiba failing to pay its debt appear low now, investors may have legitimate reasons to worry about getting their money back in case of default. The one-year odds of Toshiba neglecting to pay its debt have climbed to about 1.22 percent from less than 0.3 percent in mid-December, according to Bloomberg's default-risk model, which takes into account stock and debt metrics. [Extracted from the article]

Nikkei, NHK report charges related to Westinghouse acquisition The cost to protect against non-payment for Toshiba rose 50 basis points to 135 basis points as of 1:50 p.m. in Tokyo, according to data from a credit-default swap trader, who asked not to be identified. [Extracted from the article]

Kawasaki Kisen bond risk drops most in 3 1/2 months on merger The planned merger between the container arms of Nippon Yusen KK, Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Ltd. and Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Ltd. would create a company controlling 7 percent of the world's box-shipping trade. [Extracted from the article]

BOJ's move to control yield curve "is very logical:" Fidelity "Stopping the yen from strengthening is something that needs to be achieved on a medium- to long-term basis and that was impossible with the BOJ's purchasing program, so the BOJ has committed to a yield objective, increasing sustainability. [Extracted from the article]

Keystone seeks at least 10 billion yen market value for Avon Japan's Avon Products Co., formerly a unit of U.S. cosmetics company Avon Products Inc., is working with private equity investor Keystone Partners Co. and a large domestic securities company to relist in Tokyo. [Extracted from the article]

The jump in Tokyo Electric Power Co. Holdings Inc.'s bond risk after the election victory of a gubernatorial candidate opposed to the restart of the utility's Kashiwazaki Kariwa nuclear plant is overdone and represents an investment opportunity, according to SMBC Nikko Securities Inc. and BNP Paribas SA. That followed the victory of Ryuichi Yoneyama, who said on Sunday he can't approve the restart of the seven-reactor nuclear facility in Niigata prefecture under its current status, according to Jiji Press. [Extracted from the article]

Tepco sees insolvency risk if decommissioning taken in one go Attribution Tesun Oh: by reporter Finbarr Flynn: by reporter Sandy Hendry: editor responsible Ken McCallum: editor Emi Urabe: by reporter Tomoko Yamazaki: editor Andrew Monahan: editor responsible. [Extracted from the article]

Summer bonus amounts have climbed for four years in a row since Prime Minister Shinzo Abe came into power in late 2012, and after the Bank of Japan introduced record monetary stimulus measures. Attribution Yuko Takeo: by reporter Tesun Oh: by reporter Will Davies: editor Jeff Sutherland: editor responsible. [Extracted from the article]

A spokesman at Kawasaki Kisen, who asked not to be identified, said Hanjin Shipping's filing for court protection could reduce excessive supply in the shipping sector, and that may lead to a market recovery. Given Hanjin's relatively young fleet, its capacity will likely find opportunistic buyers looking for discounted assets, Lee Klaskow, a senior analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence, wrote in a report dated Aug. 31. [Extracted from the article]

SoftBank Group Corp.'s debt -- which is set to swell as its latest global acquisition becomes effective on Monday -- is nearing a level at which Moody's Investors Service has said it will consider a rating downgrade. Attribution Tesun Oh: by reporter Finbarr Flynn: by reporter Sandy Hendry: editor responsible Ken McCallum: editor Tomoko Yamazaki: editor Andrew Monahan: editor responsible. [Extracted from the article]

International investors seeking bargains in London's prime office market following the Brexit vote are being frustrated because sellers won't lower prices, according to Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. Buyers and sellers are trying to find the appropriate valuation for prime office property in London and a 10 percent decline "seems to be the price correction", according to Dyer. [Extracted from the article]

Those downsides could be tolerable for BOJ Governor Haruhiko Kuroda as he looks for new steps to get more money flowing in an economy that has only grown half of the time since he launched his stimulus in April 2013. Attribution Tesun Oh: by reporter Sandy Hendry: editor Yusuke Miyazawa: editor responsible Ken McCallum: editor Andrew Monahan: editor responsible. [Extracted from the article]

Acquisition premiums surge to highest since financial crisis The average gap between a company's purchase price and its market value is at 24.8 percent for deals between Japanese firms, the highest since the global financial crisis in 2009, Bloomberg-compiled data show. A Development Bank of Japan-led fund's takeover of Kinugawa Rubber Industrial Co. at a premium of 44 percent is one of 4.4 trillion yen in M&A deals between Japanese companies in the first half, the highest level since 2006, according to Bloomberg-compiled data. [Extracted from the article]

A Citic Group Corp. unit plans to raise about 30 billion yen ($299 million) for a fund that will make private equity investments in Japan, as Chinese firms buy Japanese assets at the fastest pace in at least a decade. His firm has helped Japanese firms work with Chinese counterparts, according to Nakano. [Extracted from the article]

Market speculation for BOJ policy changes has sent rates up The yield on corporate securities of 15 years or more rose 13 basis points in July to 0.49 percent, with investors losing 1.94 percent in the period, data from Nikko Research Center show. Another step the BOJ could take is to abolish its negative interest-rate policy, which would also slow the rush into longer debt that below-zero yields had fueled, according to PineBridge Investments LP. [Extracted from the article]

Star Mica Co., a Tokyo-listed real-estate company founded by an ex-Goldman Sachs Group Inc. banker, plans to double returns from apartments using Airbnb to house tourists from abroad. Shinichi Tatebayashi, the chief executive officer of the startup Squeeze, said he decided to establish the company because of his experience renting out an apartment in Japan while working in Singapore. [Extracted from the article]

"Big positive" SoftBank overhauling its investments: Nomura The acquisition will probably push up SoftBank's net debt to earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization to 4.1 times from 3.8 times, Nomura's Uomoto wrote. [Extracted from the article]

Mizuho Securities analyst Tono says note spreads may widen "Volatile exchange rates since the Brexit vote mean Mitsui OSK may need to revise its earnings forecast", said Mizuho Securities analyst Shogo Tono. [Extracted from the article]

Japan Bank Zeal Surprises Loadstar "A 50-year loan is abnormal, and the fact banks need to make such loans is problematic", said Takashi Miura, an analyst at Credit Suisse Group AG in Tokyo. Banks can't make money on short-term loans because of the disappearance of lending margins, so they are offering more long-term, fixed-rate funding, Miura said. [Extracted from the article]

Number of yen company yields below 0% up 10-fold after Brexit Attribution Tesun Oh: by reporter Finbarr Flynn: by reporter Sandy Hendry: editor responsible Ken McCallum: editor Tomoko Yamazaki: editor Andrew Monahan: editor responsible. [Extracted from the article]

Bank has more than 50 staff targeting investors with debt Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. wants to sell more domestic and overseas loans to investors as yields in Japan vanish and regulators pressure banks to make better use of capital. [Extracted from the article]

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc., the largest publicly-traded trust bank, says downside risks to prices have increased. "We're watching the market carefully because we get a strong sense that the market is being pushed up mainly by a lot of lending", Tokyo-based Fujii said in an interview. [Extracted from the article]

Satoshi Tsunakawa took over as president on Wednesday Toshiba Corp. President Satoshi Tsunakawa, a day after stepping into his new role, cautioned that the company is still recovering from a bruising accounting scandal and faces a lengthy turnaround process. [Extracted from the article]

Indonesia, which this month failed to convince S&P Global Ratings it wasn't junk rated, found it easier to sell Japanese banks its debt with yields well below 1 percent. Japanese lenders bought more than half of five-year notes when Indonesia sold 100 billion yen ($954 million) in Samurai bonds on Wednesday in a deal that included three-year debt paying a coupon of 0.83 percent. Attribution Tesun Oh: by reporter Finbarr Flynn: by reporter Sandy Hendry: editor responsible Ken McCallum: editor Tomoko Yamazaki: editor Andrew Monahan: editor responsible. [Extracted from the article]

Mexico issues its lowest-priced Samurai bonds on record Indonesia is marketing three-year and five-year Samurai notes scheduled to sell next week, while French lender BPCE SA is set to price a yen deal on Friday including five-year notes paying a coupon of 0.15 percent. [Extracted from the article]

A Toyota Motor Corp. unit sold yen bonds Tuesday with the lowest coupon ever for a Japanese company, reflecting the plunge in borrowing costs as the central bank pushes ahead with unprecedented monetary stimulus. Toyota, the world's largest automaker, last month sold 60 billion yen of debt including 20-year bonds paying a yield of 0.343 percent. [Extracted from the article]

Japanese banks are getting hurt as the negative-rate policy compresses their lending margins, with the top-three firms including Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. forecasting this month that net income will fall a combined 5.2 percent in the year started April 1. Companies that borrow at floating rates may also be able to use floor options to ensure that interest-rate swaps they use to hedge against rising rates don't end up costing them due to negative rates, Takahashi said. [Extracted from the article]

Takata Corp.'s bonds have dropped to record lows amid mounting concerns about its financing prospects following the expansion of a U.S. airbag recall and a ratings downgrade. There's no serious funding concern or material uncertainty over itself as a going concern because the company will take steps including cutting costs, selling non-core businesses and overhauling its inflator business, Takata said in a statement earlier this month. [Extracted from the article]

Three-month Tibor drops to record low after BOJ policy easing Banks face penalties if they increase cash holdings significantly and thereby "decrease" the effects of negative rates, according to a Jan. 29 statement by the BOJ. [Extracted from the article]

Ruling party's Yamamoto calls for debt sales for quake relief The apparent lack of bond traders' concern about a likely increase in debt issuance highlights how skewed the market has become as the BOJ snaps up securities. [Extracted from the article]

Diamond Realty gets hotel finance inquiries for Tokyo, Kansai The Development Bank of Japan Inc., Star Asia Investment Corp. and LaSalle Logiport REIT are among companies tapping investor demand for higher returns in the property market at a time when unprecedented central bank easing has lowered sovereign bond yields to below zero. [Extracted from the article]

Kyushu Railway Co., which operates trains on Japan's southwestern island, halted all bullet-line services after an earthquake derailed out-of-service coaches last night near Kumamoto station. To contact the reporters on this story:Tesun Oh in Tokyo at toh15@bloomberg.net;Kiyotaka Matsuda in Tokyo at kmatsuda@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story:Young-Sam Cho at ycho2@bloomberg.net;Yusuke Miyazawa at ymiyazawa3@bloomberg.netDave McCombs Attribution Young-Sam Cho: editor responsible Tesun Oh: by reporter Kiyotaka Matsuda: by reporter Dave McCombs: editor Yusuke Miyazawa: editor responsible. [Extracted from the article]

The fixed rate paid in exchange for floating-rate payments for a year in Japan's interest rate swap market fell below zero after the BOJ started charging banks for reserves in February, and was at minus 0.049 percent on Thursday. "Without swaps, banks will have trouble making floating-rate loans and will need to extend fixed-rate loans, but most banks don't like lending at fixed rates, so they're becoming hesitant about making new loans". [Extracted from the article]

Stronger yen, unexpectedly warm winter weather hurt earnings Attribution Young-Sam Cho: editor responsible Tesun Oh: by reporter Dave McCombs: by reporter Stephanie Wong: by editor reporter responsible Monami Yui: assist Daryl Loo: editor. [Extracted from the article]

The Japan committee is one of five regional panels charged with judging such matters, and each comprises 10 sell-side dealers and five buy-side voting firms, according to ISDA's website. Attribution Tesun Oh: by reporter Finbarr Flynn: by reporter Sandy Hendry: editor responsible Ken McCallum: editor David Yong: assist Andrew Monahan: editor responsible Sridhar Natarajan: assist. [Extracted from the article]

Stronger yen, warm weather, heavy discounting hurt profit Fast Retailing also delivered second-quarter profit that missed analysts forecast as heavy discounting also hurt earnings and margins. [Extracted from the article]

Members on the Japan panel include Bank of America N.A., Goldman Sachs International, Nomura International Plc, and Citadel LLC, ISDA's Web page shows. Attribution Tesun Oh: by reporter Nabila Ahmed: editor responsible Finbarr Flynn: by reporter Ken McCallum: editor Andrew Monahan: editor responsible Sridhar Natarajan: by reporter. [Extracted from the article]

Question on ISDA website asks if a credit event occurred Attribution Tesun Oh: by reporter Pavel Alpeyev: assist Finbarr Flynn: by reporter Sandy Hendry: assist Ken McCallum: editor Andrew Monahan: editor responsible. [Extracted from the article]

Mitsui default swaps rise most in six months on loss forecast The forecast losses probably won't have a big impact on the credit quality of Mitsui and Mitsubishi because of their strong balance sheets, said Shogo Tono, a senior credit analyst at Mizuho Securities Co. [Extracted from the article]

Swap premium for yen holders reaches record 102.5 basis points The Bank of Japan's negative interest rate policy is making it more expensive for domestic banks to hedge dollar investments, threatening to slow their escape from negative rates into U.S. currency debt. When securing dollar funds for overseas investments, Japanese financial institutions often use trades that involve swapping greenback and yen interest rates, instead of taking on exchange rate risk by trading currencies. [Extracted from the article]

Japan's "Quiet Property Bubble" Faces End as Transactions Slide Property transactions slumped 31 percent in second half Investors bearish on Japan's property market now exceed bulls for the first time since 2008, according to a survey by Tokyo-based NLI Research Institute published this week. [Extracted from the article]