No Plans to Bail Out Japan - IMF

On Thursday the International Monetary Fund said that Japan does not need financial help, and that the country has the means to get through this disaster and recover. Of course, until the full extent of the damage is known, perhaps we shouldn’t be so final.

"We do believe that what the Japanese government has been doing on the monetary side to ensure stability of their financial system and doing what is necessary to meet the needs of the people of this crisis is the appropriate policy," she said.

On Monday, the Bank of Japan injected $180 billion into its financial system to shore up the economy to weather the lasting effects of the earthquake, tsunami and possible nuclear disaster.

In the short term, Japan needs to focus on search and rescue, humanitarian and infrastructure demands, the IMF spokesman said. And the IMF considers Japan on strong footing to handle that without financial help.

"It's a strong and wealthy society, and the government has the full financial resources to address those needs," Atkinson said.

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Will Global Economy Take a Hit From Tsunami?

Probably not, at least that's what economists are saying. The tragic earthquake and tsunami in Japan might push the country into a recession, but some experts are predicting a quick recovery. Let’s hope for a quick recovery in every way for Japan.

CNN reports:

While most of the industrial base of Japan was spared the worst of the disaster, few plants are back up and running yet as the country tries to come to grips with the crisis.

"The recent events in Japan are first and foremost a human tragedy," said economists from Capital Economics in a note Monday. "Nonetheless, the markets also need to consider the economic impact."

Here are the 3 key questions in trying to judge the economic chaos caused by the disaster.

How bad will Japanese businesses be hit?

Even in areas not directly damaged by the quake and flooding, many factories remain closed due to damage to roads and rails, disruptions of supply chains and limits on the supply of electricity.

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China Raises US Debt holdings as Others Offload

While other countries are dropping US debt holdings like a hot potato, China and Japan are buying them up. Beijing increased its US holdings to almost $884 billion. Is it time to start learning Mandarin yet?

From Yahoo News:

The United States' top creditor China increased its stockpile of American debt in September, official figures showed on Tuesday, even as other nations slashed their holdings.

Both China and Japan bucked the trend of foreign investors cutting their exposure of US assets.

Overall holdings -- known as net long-term capital inflows in financial jargon -- fell 37 percent from elevated levels in August.

Amid political sensitivities over the level of US bonds held by Beijing, the emerging market giant -- excluding Hong Kong -- increased its holdings by 1.7 percent to nearly 884 billion dollars.

Japan meanwhile raised its Treasury holdings to 865 billion dollars, a more than three percent increase.

"The strong interest in Treasury bonds and notes points to a still-high level of risk aversion in global financial markets," said Tu Packard of Moody's Analytics.

Hawaii Tourism Japan Markets Smoking In Japan

As part of a campaign to encourage Japanese smokers to visit the Hawaiian Islands, Hawaii Tourism Japan has begun marketing the phrase "Smoking With Aloha," along with 40,000 free ashtrays with a flower logo. The new plan is part of Hawaii Tourism Japan’s effort to correct the popular myth in Japan that Hawaii has a blanket no smoking rule. The tourism group says the misunderstanding has caused the number of Japanese visitor to sharply decrease. However, of the Coalition for a Tobacco-Free Hawaii is not happy about the new campaign. "This is not really sending a message that Hawaii is concerned about good health," said interim president Kathy Harty. "We shouldn't give the message that aloha means smoking." Source: BBC