Tuesday, September 9, 2014

"Bank of Japan Buys Government Debt at Negative Yield "

My head hurts.
From Real Time Economics:
Bank of Japan Gov. Haruhiko Kuroda isn’t getting a great deal on the government debt his bank is buying.
Bloomberg News
Tuesday marked another milestone in the topsy-turvy world of monetary easing in Japan: The Bank of Japan bought short-term Japanese government debt at a negative yield for the first time, according to market participants.

The BOJ scooped up some of the three-month No. 477 Treasury bill, which has traded at a negative yield for the past two trading days amid strong demand, the market participants said.

Normally, people who buy debt expect to get their money back plus some interest. Negative yield means the buyer gets back less than he or she puts in.

Why would the Bank of Japan buy under such conditions?...MORE