Toyota Industries to accept Toyota Group's $42 billion offer, Nikkei reports
Toyota Industries is expected to accept the $42 billion takeover bid by Toyota Motor and other group companies as early as Tuesday, the Nikkei newspaper reported on Monday.
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CNA
an hour ago
- CNA
BOJ to consider slowing pace of bond tapering next year, sources say
TOKYO :The Bank of Japan is considering slowing the pace of tapering in its bond purchases from next fiscal year onward, said four sources familiar with its thinking, a move that would signal its focus on avoiding big bond market disruptions. The move would come in the wake of heightened volatility in the Japanese government bond (JGB) market, with super-long yields having spiked to record highs last month reflecting investors' concern over Japan's worsening public finances. There is no consensus yet within the BOJ, as some prefer to maintain the current pace on the view the bank should focus on reducing its presence in the bond market, the sources said. A final decision will be made at the BOJ's next policy meeting on June 16-17, when the board conducts a review of a current tapering plan that runs through March and comes up with a subsequent programme for April 2026 onward. The BOJ received a sizeable number of requests from bond market participants to cut its quarterly taper size to around 200 billion yen, minutes of its meeting on May 20-21 with bank and financial institutions showed on Monday. Some policymakers see such views as a reasonable ballpark figure, the sources said. That would be half the size of the reduction under the current plan laid out last year, at which the BOJ cuts bond buying by around 400 billion yen per quarter until March 2026. "The balance of opinions at the meeting will be a crucial factor in the BOJ's discussions on the taper plan," one of the sources said. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not authorised to speak publicly. The BOJ began tapering its huge bond buying last year to wean the economy off decades of massive stimulus, and breathe life back to a market made dormant by its huge presence. Though the BOJ still holds huge amounts of JGBs, some market players are now worrying that the steady reduction in the bank's bond buying could leave them vulnerable during heightened market volatility such as last month's sell-off in super-long bonds. While many market players expect the BOJ to maintain or slightly slow the pace of tapering beyond April 2026, the BOJ has been mum on what the new plan could look like. Having ditched a bond yield control policy last year, the BOJ is in no mood to ramp up bond buying in the wake of recent rises in super-long bond yields as medium and shorter-maturity bonds, as well as bank lending rates, remained stable. But the volatility seen in the super-long JGB market has heightened awareness within the BOJ of the need to ensure its bond tapering plans do not destabilise markets, the sources said. "The BOJ won't react directly to the rise in super-long yields, but is mindful of the risk the move could affect the entire yield curve," a second source said. The new programme is likely to cover a one-year period running through March 2027. MILDER TAPERING EYED The BOJ has lagged well behind its global counterparts in whittling down crisis-era stimulus, having only exited last year a decade-long, massive stimulus aimed at pulling the economy out of stagnation. It also ended negative interest rates last year, though short-term borrowing costs are still stuck at 0.5 per cent. While the BOJ also began tapering its huge bond buying last year, it still owns roughly half of outstanding JGBs. At its upcoming review, the BOJ is likely to roughly maintain its taper plan for this year, which would see monthly bond buying halved to 3 trillion yen by March 2026. If the BOJ were to cut bond buying by 200 billion yen per quarter from fiscal 2026, its monthly buying will fall to around 2 trillion yen by the March 2027 end of the business year. That would roughly mesh with requests made by some market participants for the BOJ to reduce its monthly bond buying to around 1 trillion to 2 trillion yen, according to the minutes of the meeting. Compiled by the BOJ's staff, the minutes of the bank's meetings with bond market participants is seen as reflecting its preferred approach on bond tapering, and thus offers clues on the bank's final decision, analysts say. ($1 = 144.0200 yen)
Independent Singapore
2 hours ago
- Independent Singapore
'You get to decide if you stay down or try again' — Laid off SG woman once earning S$10K/month, finds fresh start in the gig economy
SINGAPORE: After a near-death experience from a ruptured appendix in 2015 and being laid off from her corporate job of 10 years shortly after, 43-year-old Yang Baoli Florence struggled to find a job for six months. Previously, earning a monthly salary of S$10,000 even made her job search more difficult. Despite actively applying for roles across the public, government, and private sectors and her willingness to take a pay cut, she only received blunt responses that they couldn't match her previous salary and implied she wouldn't stay long. She told The Independent Singapore that HRs would tell her to 'look elsewhere' instead of 'wasting their time'. 'It was a deeply challenging period, not just professionally but personally,' Ms Yang said, sharing how she had to juggle mortgage payments and bills while feeling lost and discouraged. With few options left, she decided to get a taxi licence and is now working as a TADA driver. Ms Yang said the biggest blessing she got from entering the gig economy was the flexibility to look after her elderly parents. While she's not earning as much as her previous job, she said she makes enough to support her family, enjoys working at her pace, and doesn't need to work long hours. She also shared that simple conversations she had with her passengers allowed her to sometimes share her story and encourage them as well. Many Singaporeans have been turning to the gig economy to fill long periods of unemployment, some taking on delivery gigs or giving tuition . While many tapped into upskilling through their SkillsFuture credits, many still reported difficulty landing a job . In May, Jobstreet reported that 42% of Singapore employers are planning to expand their permanent headcount in the first half of 2025 . However, a recent report from Indeed stated that job postings fell for the fourth straight month in April —though levels remain above pre-pandemic figures. Ms Yang advised those facing similar struggles: 'Never stop learning and never be afraid to start again.' She said, 'Take a new licence, take a new course. Sometimes, it's in the trying and even failing to discover your true strengths and passions.' To her, success is defined not by title or salary, but by how far one has come. 'No matter how high you once were, life can knock you down but you get to decide if you will continue to stay down or to get back up and try again,' she added. /TISG Read also: 53-year-old retrenched Singaporean dad launches indoor air quality company after his toddler kept falling sick
Independent Singapore
2 hours ago
- Independent Singapore
‘Toxic as hell' — SG financial agent calls out her company director for imposing fines and spending hours gossiping about other agents
SINGAPORE: A financial consultant recently shared on Reddit that she is considering leaving her agency due to what she described as a 'toxic' and 'unprofessional' management team. In her detailed Reddit post, she claimed that a particular director was responsible for creating such a toxic work environment. According to her, this director imposed fines on agents who missed meetings or events, which were later relabelled as 'courtesy contributions' to make them seem less punitive. 'The late fees and no-show fines have been changed to 'Courtesy Contributions,' but they are still compulsory. She [the director] mentioned that the compliance department approved this and taught her how to collect using this alternative name. But if you don't pay, she will exclude and eliminate you like an outcast.' The consultant also mentioned that the director often spends hours gossiping about other agents instead of actually managing the agency. 'It's really unprofessional. If they have so much free time for this, shouldn't they be focusing on making the agency a better place and helping it grow?' the consultant wrote. She added that there is clear and constant favouritism at play. The director's own daughter, who is also in the agency, reportedly gets away with a poor work ethic and unprofessional behaviour. 'She shows obvious favouritism toward her daughter, who faces no consequences for her unprofessional behaviour. It's really like mother, like daughter. The director manipulates situations by presenting one-sided stories to turn agents against each other. So we just listen with one ear in and one ear out because we don't want to get involved in all this drama.' The toxic behaviour reportedly extends to the manipulation of facts. The consultant explained that the director often twists stories and presents one-sided narratives to turn agents against one another. She then described a disturbing incident that took place during a recent European convention trip, which was supposed to be a celebration for high-performing agents and their families. According to her, one agent who was planning to resign was targeted by the director. 'She deliberately excluded a family with a child from joining the bus tour just because she heard that that particular agent was intending to quit, and they were left alone in Europe all by themselves!' she continued. 'She used the bus journey as an opportunity to badmouth agents in front of our families and children. Our parents and kids, who just wanted to enjoy our holidays, had to listen to workplace drama and negativity instead of experiencing the trip we deserved.' See also Malaysian singer Yuna gets signed on as model In closing, the consultant said the environment has become so toxic that it no longer feels like a place where people can thrive. 'My ears have been ringing from listening to such constant negativity and unprofessional conduct, and it makes it impossible to focus on building a sustainable career here,' she said. 'Has anyone else experienced similar toxic management at your insurance agencies? Can anyone recommend agencies that maintain professional standards and actually focus on business growth rather than workplace drama?' she asked at the end of her post. 'Go hunt for the right person to guide you…' In the comments, many netizens offered their support and encouraged the consultant to walk away from the toxic environment. One individual, who identified as an insurance agent with over a decade of experience, wrote, 'I have heard many stories about toxic directors with zero empathy and management skills. I highly encourage you and any fellow agents to go hunt for the right person to guide you. Don't be afraid and take the threats from your director.' Another user chimed in to share their own experience of leaving a toxic agency, saying, 'I left the red company for similar reasons and joined as an IFA. I'm sure there are plenty of teams and agencies out there that are really good.' See also Zalora ropes in Gunjan Soni from Myntra as its new CEO Meanwhile, a third individual reflected on the deeper reasons behind such toxicity, writing, 'In my opinion, the more empty and useless a department or company is, the more drama and politics there will be. When a company has real value to provide to society, and has actual goals to meet, people within naturally operate with direction and are less preoccupied with politics and drama.' In other news, a Singaporean employee claimed on social media that he was wrongfully terminated after being accused of leaking confidential information. On Monday (June 2), he took to the r/askSingapore Reddit forum to seek advice and share his experience with fellow locals. In his post, he explained that he was recently dismissed from his full-time position because his employer alleged that he had disclosed sensitive company information to other departments or colleagues. However, he firmly denied these accusations, stating that they were completely 'untrue.' Read more: 'My boss terminated me without proper cause' — Employee claims he was wrongfully terminated over leaked info accusation Featured image by freepik (for illustration purposes only)
