BOJ Concedes Japan Back in Recession, Does Nothing
The Telegraph
Japan enters recession but no yen printing yet
Japan has entered a recession, according to its central bank, but its policy-makers held off from further measures to boost growth despite the devastating impact of last month's earthquake and tsunami.
Reuters
BOJ reckons Japan in recession, stands pat on policy
* BOJ estimates economy tipped into technical recession in Q1
* Industrial output in March registers record decline
* Policy rate kept steady at 0-0.1 pct, no new easing steps
* BOJ says Japan's economy to recover from October (Recasts with BOJ outlook)
...market participants were surprised to learn the BOJ board had outvoted a proposal by Deputy Governor Kiyohiko Nishimura to expand the pool of funds for asset buying and market operations by 5 trillion yen ($61 billion) to 45 trillion yen.
Not only is it unusual for the BOJ board to reject proposals from a governor or a deputy governor, the meeting also came alongside the release of a spate of bleak data.
Industrial output fell at a record monthly pace in March, Japanese household spending declined at a record annual pace and another private survey showed manufacturing activity languishing at a two-year low...