WIRE REPORTS

FreeBit, Mizuho Securities, Nisshin Steel: Japan Equity Preview BusinessWeek Mizuho Securities Co. (8606 JT): The securities firm said it reached an agreement with Tudor Investment Corp. (13789Z US) to provide high-frequency trading ... and more » Petrobras ramp-up Project Finance International Mizuho, Standard Chartered and WestLB are acting as MLAs. Conglomerate Queiroz Galvão is looking to select MLAs on what could be a US$600m−$700m loan to ... Winds of change Project Finance International The financing of Musselroe was to be a club, with ANZ, Bank of Ireland, BBVA, Credit Agricole, nabCapital, Dexia, HSBC, KBC, Mizuho and SG interested in the ... Mixed Open Expected For Tokyo Stocks RTT News Among the major banks, Mitsubishi UFJ was down 1 yen or 0.22 percent, Mizuho Financial was unchanged, Sumitomo Mitsui was up 6 yen or 0.45 percent and ... and more » The Japan Times Kids at pro-North high schools fret tuition waiver snub The Japan Times But others, including Social Democratic Party head Mizuho Fukushima and Shizuka Kamei, leader of Kokumin Shinto (People's New Party), are opposed to ... The Japan Times No easy solutions for US, Japan to revive economies The Japan Times Tetsuro Sugiura, chief economist at Mizuho Research Institute, served as moderator of discussions. Over the short term, the huge budget deficits incurred by ... Treasuries Rise as 3-Year Auction Yield Falls Below Forecast BusinessWeek “People are continually parking money in the front end,” said James Combias, New York-based head of Treasury trading at Mizuho Securities USA Inc., ... and more » Sony PSP Go Smartphone & SonyPad Tablet PC Rumor ozCarGuide ... the market," as Nobuo Kurahashi, a consumer-electronics analyst at Japanese brokerage Mizuho Investors Securities, told the Wall Street Journal. ... and more » Fujitsu Probe Fails to Defuse Controversy Over Nozoe BusinessWeek While analysts at Morgan Stanley, Mizuho Securities Co. and Deutsche Bank AG have voiced concerns over Fujitsu's disclosure practices this week following ... and more » Euro is weaker in Asia with Greece's debt crisis in focus eTaiwan News "People just don't feel like buying the euro or sterling," Mamoru Arai, a senior trader at Mizuho Corporate Bank, told Dow Jones Newswires. ... and more »

DAILY REPORTS

Mar 9 Nikkei down after hitting 6-week high Japan's Nikkei stock index fell Tuesday on profit-taking after rising to a six-week high, but losses were limited as investors stayed on the sidelines ahead of the release of key Asian indicators. The benchmark Nikkei 225 stock average fell 18.27 points, or 0.2 percent, to 10,567.65 after hitting a six-week high Monday. The broader Topix index shed 0.3 percent to 924.38. "Investors locked in profits following yesterday's rally. It was technical selling," said Masatoshi Sato, market analyst at Mizuho Investors Securities Co. Ltd. (AP) Feb 19 Nikkei slips as resources hit after Fed; banks down Japan's Nikkei stock average fell 2.1 percent on Friday, with resource-linked shares such as Mitsui & Co (8031.T) hurt after the U.S. Federal Reserve's discount rate hike jolted commodities prices. Property shares tumbled after real estate investment advisory firm Davinci Holdings (4314.OJ) said its liabilites exceeded assets, highlighting risks for the sector, while Mizuho Financial (8411.T) dropped after a brokerage downgrade on recapitalisation concerns. (Reuters) Feb 18 Megabanks embrace Internet banking The nation's three megabank groups, which own a vast network of banking outlets, are embracing Internet banking. In their efforts to compete with banks that specialize in Internet-based banking, the megabanks reward customers who use such banking services with lower commission charges and allow them to manage several accounts at once. Meanwhile, banks are trying make Internet banking easier. Mizuho Bank's membership-based Mizuho Mileage Club allows customers to view a variety of items online, not just transactions with the bank, but stock and credit card details and the balance of their air miles, among others. Lottery tickets can be bought online and winnings collected online. (Yomiuri) Jan 5 Japan to model 'child fund' on French system The government will explore setting up a children's fund modeled after France's family allocations system, which finances many of its child-rearing support measures, Mizuho Fukushima, minister in charge of measures to deal with the low birthrate, said Monday. Fukushima floated the idea during a visit to France, where the system is credited with contributing to a recovery in the birthrate, after talks with her French counterpart, Xavier Darcos. (Japan Times) Dec 21 Nikkei hits 8-wk closing high on techs, banks fall Japan's Nikkei average rose 0.4 percent to an eight-week closing high on Monday, boosted by gains in high-tech exporters such as Advantest Corp (6857.T) after rises in U.S. rivals late last week, with additional help coming from a weaker yen. Banks such as Mizuho Financial Group (8411.T) slid, giving up some of the hefty gains they made last week, as worries that they are likely to issue new stocks to enhance capital linger, driving the broader Topix index slightly lower. (Reuters) Dec 19 Woman held after body found in suitcase; roommate missing A 33-year-old woman was arrested Saturday on suspicion of abandoning the body of a woman--thought to be her roommate--caking the body with cement and stuffing it in a suitcase, police said. According to the police, Tomoko Nitta, unemployed, of Mizuhomachi, Tokyo, allegedly abandoned the naked body of a woman in a plastic suitcase measuring 60 centimeters by 80 centimeters by 50 centimeters at her apartment in mid-December. The body had been bent in half and plastered with what appeared to be cement. (Yomiuri) Dec 4 TSE to blame for trading error: court The Tokyo District Court on Friday ordered the Tokyo Stock Exchange to pay about ¥10.7 billion in damages to Mizuho Securities Co., saying the bourse is more to blame in a case of botched trading in 2005 that caused the brokerage to incur hefty losses. (Japan Times) Dec 1 Extra budget to exceed 2.7 trillion yen Leaders of the three ruling parties agreed Monday the second supplementary budget this fiscal year will be higher than the initially planned 2.7 trillion yen. Deputy Prime Minister Naoto Kan reached agreement on this with Mizuho Fukushima, head of the Social Democratic Party, and Shizuka Kamei, chairman of the People's New Party. (Asahi) Nov 19 Mitsubishi UFJ offer spells 'harsh world' for rivals Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. may beat Japanese banking rivals to market with its planned sale of as much as 1 trillion yen ($11.2 billion) in stock as regulators demand bigger capital cushions. Chief Executive Officer Nobuo Kuroyanagi said he didn't want to "miss the opportunity" to tap equity investors for the second time in less than a year as smaller competitors Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc. and Mizuho Financial Group Inc. are barred from selling common stock for at least another month. (Bloomberg) Nov 14 Big Japanese banks show signs of recovery Mizuho Financial's first profit in five quarters and the doubling of profit by its rival, Sumitomo Mitsui, signal that major Japanese banks are recovering from the economic crisis, albeit slowly, Reuters reported. Japanese lenders have suffered smaller credit losses than their Western rivals, but they have also taken longer to rebound, hampered by rock-bottom interest rates and dependence on domestic lending. (New York Times) Oct 14 Nikkei edges down as banks, exporters weigh Japan's Nikkei stock average edged down 0.2 percent, hit by profit-taking after five days of gains and with exporters such as Canon Inc (7751.T) pressured by a stronger yen. Bank shares such as Mizuho Financial Group (8411.T) slid after their U.S. peers fell ahead of earnings reports from several major banks this week, with JP Morgan Chase (JPM.N) reporting on Wednesday and Goldman Sachs (GS.N) on Thursday. (Reuters) Sep 8 Once high flyers, Lehman traders grounded at Mizuho When Lehman Brothers collapsed last September, Japan's Mizuho Securities elbowed past bigger rival Nomura Holdings to scoop up one of Lehman's prized assets in Tokyo: its hotshot team of electronic traders. A year later, that team of whiz-kid traders, cloistered from the rest of the trading floor by a wall of glass, has produced scant revenue, according to three people with direct knowledge of the matter. (Reuters) Aug 20 Ex-skating coach denies charges of raping student as trial opens A former figure skating club coach facing charges of raping a 13-year-old girl he was training denied the charges against him as his trial opened in the Nagoya District Court on Thursday. Facing charges of rape resulting in injury is Yasuji Sakai, 58, a resident of Nagoya's Mizuho Ward. (Mainichi) Aug 1 Mixed fortunes for Japan's top banks Japan's top two banks saw mixed fortunes in the first quarter as Mitsubishi UFJ Financial's profits soared thanks to stronger global markets, but rival Mizuho suffered a loss, their results showed on Friday. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. (MUFG) said net profit jumped 48 percent in the fiscal first quarter through June from a year earlier to 75.94 billion yen (800 million dollars). (AFP) Jul 31 Mizuho books fourth consecutive quarterly loss Mizuho Financial Group Inc., the nation's third-biggest bank by market value, booked an unexpected fourth straight quarterly loss on bad-loan and credit costs. (Japan Times) Jul 1 JAL inks emergency loan accord Japan Airlines Corp. said Tuesday it has signed a loan agreement with two government-backed lenders and three major banks in a bid to return to profitability. The five lenders are the Development Bank of Japan, Japan Bank for International Cooperation, Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corp. and Mizuho Corporate Bank. (Japan Times) May 21 Sobering up Japan banks Having put a tumultuous year behind them, investors in Japan's big-three banks are entitled to a bit of giddiness about the future. But they had better sober up soon. Mitsubishi UFJ, Sumitomo Mitsui, and Mizuho are all forecasting a profitable year ahead. It's a welcome turnaround. The three racked up $13 billion in combined losses in the year ended in March. (Wall Street Journal) May 20 Small business struggle as banks reluctant to extend loans Smaller businesses are struggling financially as major banks are reluctant to extend loans to them amid the ongoing recession. As of the end of March this year, Mizuho Financial Group saw a 1.24 trillion yen decline in its balance of loans for smaller businesses compared to the same period the previous year. (Mainichi) Apr 23 Mizuho Financial post 5.9-bln-dlr loss Japan's second-largest bank Mizuho Financial Group said Thursday it suffered an estimated net loss of 580 billion yen (5.9 billion dollars) in the past financial year to March. (AFP) Mar 28 Japan mega-lenders try changing culture, again Japanese mega-lenders are re-examining the corporate tradition of cross-shareholdings. Mizuho Financial Group will slash its shareholdings by one-fifth, in a bid to stem losses from the depressed Tokyo stock market. But corporate Japan made a similar effort after the East Asian financial crisis to cut down on the practice of companies buying shares in their affiliates, clients and suppliers. (Forbes) Mar 27 Mizuho's New Chief Targets $9.2 Billion Cut in Equity Holdings Mizuho Financial Group Inc. plans to sell as much as 900 billion yen ($9.2 billion) of equity holdings, as the sinking value of its investments cuts into capital and threatens to cause the bank's first annual loss in six years. (Bloomberg) Mar 22 Kenya's Kipsang wins Tokyo Marathon Battling strong winds, Kenyan Salim Kipsang and Mizuho Nasukawa of Japan collected victories at today's third annual Tokyo Marathon. Kipsang surged over the bridge at 36Km to leave Sammy Korir of Kenya and Japan's Kensuke Takahashi behind to win in 2:10:27. The time was disappointingly slow because the race was marred with strong winds, much of the time against the runners, especially in the closing stage of the course. (iaaf.org) Feb 6 Time to jump into ailing Japan banks, or jump clear? Japan's top banks have been hit by a rise in bad loans and tens of billions of dollars worth of losses on their stock portfolios as the financial crisis sparked an equities market meltdown and battered the global economy. (Bloomberg) Feb 1 Mizuho curbing overseas lending Mizuho Corporate Bank, the corporate lending arm of Mizuho Financial Group, is curbing overseas lending due to disruptions in dollar funding markets, a major Japanese newspaper said on Sunday. (Reuters) [ More... ]