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To: PaulM who wrote (8112)	3/7/1998 2:00:00 AM
From: Abner Hosmer	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 116764

Paul - Great link you posted. Really points out how rotten the consequences of non-disclosure can be, and who winds up paying for it. There's some haggling in Congress on a related issue, disclosure at the IMF. I'd like to hear a good reason why this has not been required in the past. Whose freakin' money do they think they are spending, anyway?: biz.yahoo.com >>Saxton's proposal would require the IMF to disclose the minutes of its meetings and to release loan documents and related staff studies and analyses. It would require the IMF to stop subsidizing its loans. Future IMF loan interest rates would be set at market rates. If these reforms were not implemented, future U.S. funding for the IMF would be suspended.<<

To: PaulM who wrote (8112)	3/7/1998 2:19:00 AM
From: Abner Hosmer	Respond to of 116764

Speaking of which.. biz.yahoo.com >>NEW YORK, March 6 (Reuters) - The dollar extended morning gains against the yen just before midday after a comment on Japan by a major credit rating agency highlighted the shakiness of Japan's financial sector, dealers said. Dollar/yen broke above 128 after international credit rating agency Fitch IBCA said some measures Japan has implemented to help its ailing banks are merely cosmetic, indicating the severe pressure the system is under.<< Japan regulatory system is school for govt scandal: biz.yahoo.com >>The true villains in the unfolding drama, many experts say, are not greedy individuals but the vast tangle of regulations and unwritten rules which give bureaucrats huge and often arbitrary power over private-sector firms... ..''In a more Western model...you don't have to wine and dine them (officials) to get information -- you can find a vast amount of information just by downloading it on the Internet,'' yahoo.com >>TOKYO (Reuters) - Two top Ministry of Finance officials were arrested Thursday, taking a broad probe of alleged bribery into the highest reaches of Japan's government elite. The announcement that two top financial bureaucrats allegedly took bribes from two brokerages and a major bank caused the dollar to rise against the yen as the running of the world's second-largest economy came under harsh scrutiny. The allegations concerned lavish wining and dining in Paris restaurants and rounds of golf in return for inside information on regulatory moves and favorable treatment for new products.<< Prosecutors Raid Japan's MOF as Scandals Widen: yahoo.com

To: PaulM who wrote (8112)	3/7/1998 2:26:00 AM
From: Abner Hosmer	Respond to of 116764

and the band plays on... biz.yahoo.com >>The measures included a step to boost the size of the cushion of capital that banks must hold by using public money of up to 13 trillion yen to buy banks' preferred stock and subordinated debts. They are aimed at easing the current tight lending stance by banks. Some analysts said that the government scheme providing public funds to banks has revived a so-called ''convoy system'' whereby the financially weak banks are protected and pulled along by the stronger banks. While the 21 banks unveiled streamlining plans in order to get the public funds, analysts said those plans, which focused on cutting personnel costs and reducing the number of branches, were insufficient to resolve the ailing sector's woes. James Fiorillo, a senior analyst at ING Barings, said: ''We suspect the whole scheme to have been a political manoeuvre to boost sentiment among bank investors, interbank market participants and depositors rather than an earnest effort to solve the banking system crisis.'' ''The lack of teeth in the current set of measures is further evidence of the government's inability to recognise a true banking crisis,'' he said.<<

To: PaulM who wrote (8112)	3/7/1998 2:32:00 AM
From: Abner Hosmer	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 116764

biz.yahoo.com >>TOKYO, March 3 (Reuters) - The number of Japanese corporate bankruptcies caused by the current credit crunch will rise significantly in the coming months, Noriyoshi Kobayashi, a senior researcher at Teikoku Databank Ltd says... ..He said medium-sized firms in particular were being hit hard and surmised that banks were reluctant to pull the plug on large firms ahead of book closings at the end of March. ''If a large firm goes bankrupt now, that just means a large increase in bad loans for banks,'' he said. ''There will be more large firms going under but banks are waiting for the right time and we expect that this will happen around summer.''... ..Prospects for small and medium-sized businesses -- which according to the Trade Ministry account for 99 percent of Japanese companies, almost 80 percent of output and 70 percent of the work force -- would continue to be bleak, he said. ''The economy doesn't look like it'll vastly improve in the next couple of years,'' he said. ''There's not much to smile about.''<<

To: PaulM who wrote (8112)	3/7/1998 2:50:00 AM
From: Abner Hosmer	Read Replies (5) \| Respond to of 116764

The "convoy system" in practice... biz.yahoo.com >>TOKYO, March two (Reuters) - Japan's Fuji Bank Ltd, one of the nation's largest, saw its long-term ratings cut to one grade above junk status on Monday due to the economic woes sweeping Japan and the rest of Asia. U.S. ratings agency Standard & Poor's cut Fuji's long-term debt rating to BBB plus from A minus, one grade above so-called ''speculative'' rating, better known as junk bond status. ''The downgrade reflects Standard & Poor's concerns about Fuji's exposure to future deterioration in asset quality resulting from a depressed domestic economy and the financial turmoil in Asian countries,'' it said. S&P also cited Fuji's decision last month to boost its stake in Yasuda Trust & Banking Co Ltd. Both companies are part of the Fuyo group of companies. The S&P action came just hours after Fuji said it would boost its capital cushion through the issuance of dollar-based preferred securities through a U.S. unit.<<

To: PaulM who wrote (8112)	3/7/1998 2:55:00 AM
From: Abner Hosmer	Respond to of 116764

Safe sales booming in financially fearful Japan biz.yahoo.com >>By Elaine Lies TOKYO, March 4 (Reuters) - Worried about bank failures and with little incentive to keep cash in them because of record low interest rates, Japanese are buying safes as fast as they can be made. ''Demand is so strong right now that all our workers put in at least three hours of overtime every day, and we've had to cancel Saturday vacations as well,'' said Tsutomu Ishii, a manager at Eiko Yamada, one of Japan's largest makers of safes. ''In fact, our machines are pushed right to the limit - we simply can't make any more,''...<<