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Tokyo Brief東 京 ブ リ ー フJapan's official record, in English, every weekday.

Japan, read from the primary record

Tokyo publishes in Japanese. We read it for you.

Every weekday we read what Tokyo's regulators, ministries, exchanges, and listed companies actually published. Then we send you the stories that matter, in English, with the source attached.

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Official sources, read daily

40+

One issue, every weekday

After markets close

Subscribers

Thousands

From recent issues

Lead stories from recent issues, as sent to subscribers.

  1. SoftBank Group Prices Junk-Rated Bonds at Up to 9.75% to Cover Final OpenAI Payment

    SoftBank Group locked in coupons of 7.125% to 9.75% on $10bn of dollar notes and €1bn of euro notes rated BB+ by two agencies, saying the money will fund the last $10bn tranche of its $30bn OpenAI Group commitment and that it separately plans to cancel the remaining $10bn of an unused bridge facility.

    Read the issue (opens in a new tab)

  2. Bank of Japan Raises Policy Rate to 1.25% on a 7-2 Vote, Reworks Its Climate-Lending Terms

    Japan's central bank lifted its overnight call rate guideline to around 1.25% from 1.0% on a 7-2 vote effective September 24, raised the rate it pays banks on reserves to match, and unanimously converted its ¥50tn climate-lending facility to a floating rate, with each bank's borrowing limit now tied to its own climate loan book and capped at ¥10tn.

    Read the issue (opens in a new tab)

  3. Japan Bars Deficit Bonds to Fund Its Two-Year Food Tax Cut

    Tokyo's cabinet has locked in a two-year cut to the consumption tax on food and drink, and Japan's finance minister says the shortfall must come from spending and revenue reviews, not deficit-covering bonds that investors would have to absorb.

    Read the issue (opens in a new tab)

The reading

Dozens of sources, one brief.

Most of what Tokyo publishes appears only in Japanese, across dozens of ministry and exchange websites. We read the filings, notices, and statistical releases each day and write up what moved. You get the stories, not the search.

The record

Every story links to its document.

Each article cites the filing, release, or notice it was drawn from. Figures stay attached to their reporting periods. Claims are fact-checked against the source before publication. Check any figure against the original yourself.

The cadence

Sent after Japan closes.

One issue each weekday, sent in the Tokyo evening once the exchange has closed and the filings are in. That is mid-morning in London and early morning in New York.

Who reads it

For readers whose work depends on Japan.

Read by people who allocate capital, set strategy, advise, or report on Japan.

Investors and analysts
The filing, read before the call.
Executives and strategists
The policy line before the board asks.
Advisers and consultants
The ministry budget item, with its context.
Journalists and the Japan-curious
The document, not the summary.

What we read

40+ official sources, read every day.

No wire copy, no aggregators. Every story starts with a document a Japanese institution published, usually in Japanese, often to little notice outside Japan.

Exchange and securities filings
Every securities filing and timely disclosure from Tokyo's listed companies, as filed.
Ministries and the central bank
The Ministry of Finance, the Bank of Japan, METI, and the ministries behind the day's policy.
Regulators and enforcement
The FSA and the enforcement bodies whose decisions move sectors and single names.
Statistics and public notices
Trade, immigration, tourism, energy, and public-finance releases, plus the notices few read.