Nikkei ends lower on fears U.S. rate hikes will hurt global economy.

People's Daily: Nikkei ends lower on fears U.S. rate hikes will hurt global economy.

09:20, September 06, 2022

TOKYO, Sept. 5 (Xinhua) -- Japan's benchmark Nikkei stock index closed lower for a fourth successive day Monday, following Wall Street's weak lead late last week amid ongoing concerns the U.S. Federal Reserve's aggressive rate hikes will impact the global economy.

The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average lost 31.23 points, or 0.11 percent, from Friday to close the day at 27,619.61.

The broader Topix index, meanwhile, shed 1.38 points, or 0.07 percent, to finish at 1,928.79.

Local dealers said the market mood was dented following Wall Street's poor showing on Friday, owing to solid U.S. jobs data for August supporting the median market consensus the Fed will continue with its aggressive rate hikes to combat inflation.

"The Fed will likely push ahead with a 0.75 point basis rate hike to be announced later this month, with the central bank also signaling its aggressive monetary policy will continue into the future despite the impact it will have on its own and the global economy," a Tokyo-based investment analyst was quoted as saying.

Market strategists also noted that U.S. markets being closed for the Labor Day holiday on Monday added to a risk-off mood, amid a lack of fresh trading cues.

We'll see how U.S. markets react on Tuesday's Opening Bell.

VJ Day.

History: VJ Day.

On August 14, 1945, it was announced that Japan had surrendered unconditionally to the Allies, effectively ending World War II. Since then, both August 14 and August 15 have been known as “Victoryover Japan Day,” or simply “V-J Day.” The term has also been used for September 2, 1945, when Japan’s formal surrender took place aboard the U.S.S. Missouri, anchored in Tokyo Bay.
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In a radio address in the early afternoon of August 15 (August 14 in the United States), Emperor Hirohito urged his people to accept the surrender, blaming the use of the “new and most cruel bomb” on Hiroshima and Nagasaki for the country’s defeat. “Should we continue to fight,” Hirohito declared, “it would not only result in the ultimate collapse and obliteration of the Japanese nation but would also lead to the total extinction of human civilization.”

Read more at the link.

Three dead in stabbing attack in Japan. 17 others injured.

Daily Mail: Schoolgirl and a man die and 17 others are injured after knifeman on stabbing rampage slashes commuters at a bus stop near Tokyo before slitting his own throat.

A schoolgirl and a man are dead and 17 others are injured after a mass stabbing near Tokyo on Tuesday morning.

A man wielding two knives slashed a group of commuters, mostly primary school girls, at a crowded bus stop during rush hour in Kawasaki, Japan. 

The wounded were rushed to nearby hospitals, and one girl has been confirmed dead, according to local station NHK.

Police have confirmed the suspect, believed to be in his 40s or 50s, has died after slashing himself in the neck.

A bus driver who witnessed the incident told officials the perpetrator had been holding a knife in each hand when he walked over to the bus stop and began slashing children.  

One witness told the New York Times the knifeman was shouting 'I will kill you.' 

The young children are believed to be first-grade students aged six to seven who were boarding a school bus when the man unleashed his attack.

ABC News reports 19 wounded:

NHK TV in Japan is quoting police as saying the suspect in a knife attack that wounded at least 19 people at a bus stop just outside Tokyo has died.

Police wouldn't publicly confirm the reports and it wasn't clear how many had died in Tuesday's attack.
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Some Japanese media outlets are reporting at least three deaths, while some are saying two, including the attacker.

Disputed Island has one occupant.

CNN: South Korean widow sole occupant of island.

In 1991, Kim Sin-yeol and her husband made the unusual decision to move to a lonely outcrop of islands at the heart of a long-standing territorial dispute between Japan and South Korea.
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But since the death of her husband, Kim Sung-do, last October, the 81-year-old has been the only permanent resident on the volcanic islands.
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Japan says that South Korea is illegally occupying the rocky islands, which it claims have been its sovereign territory since the 17th century. South Korea says its claim to the islands, believed to be home to underwater gas reserves, dates back to the sixth century.
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While other Koreans have expressed interest in moving to the islands to reinforce their nation's ownership of the territory, local government officials say there are no plans to encourage more people to move there.

"There is only a space for one household to stay (as) residents there," said a government official.

I can't think of a better way (at least for me) how to live. An entire island to yourself. I might even grant a temp Visa to Mrs. D. to visit. IF she insisted...

World News

CBS Local NY: Newark Liberty Airport Shutdown over drones.

Flights at Newark Liberty International Airport were temporarily delayed after a pair of drones were spotted nearby, Federal Aviation Administration sources tell CBS News’ Kris Van Cleave.

The sources say the drones were were seen flying at 3,500 feet over Teterboro Airport, less than 20 miles from Newark Airport.

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Japan Times: Karaoke bar shooting tied to Yakuza.

The karaoke bar is located in the center of the Kabukicho district and is about 500 meters northeast of JR Shinjuku Station. A number of yakuza are based in the area, which has become increasingly popular as the number of foreign tourists in Tokyo has increased.

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SMH: Concerns over whereabouts of writer who vanishes in China.

There are growing fears for the safety of a prominent Chinese-Australian writer who appears to have disappeared in China, with friends and family worried he may have been detained by authorities.

The writer and dissident Yang Hengjun left Sydney for Guangzhou on January 18 despite his friends warning him it was too dangerous for the Australian citizen to travel to China.
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He is incommunicado and has not posted anything on social media including popular Chinese platform wechat since Friday.

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Stuff: Iraqi admits in helping Islamic State make toxins.

Help us make chemical weapons, the Islamic State's emissaries said.
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 "Do I regret it? I don't know if I'd use that word," said [Iraqi scientist Suleiman al-] Afari, who was captured by US and Kurdish soldiers in 2016 and is now a prisoner in Irbil, the capital of Iraq's semiautonomous Kurdish region[.]

"They had become the government, and we now worked for them," he said. "We wanted to work so we could get paid."

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9 News: Some of the "Royals" staff is on strike. Cake price an issue.

...[staffers]’ "disappointment turned to fury" when they were made aware HRP had commissioned several elaborate and very expensive cakes from a company called Choccywoccydoodah[.]

 Royal Staffers on strike. Image: Getty

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9 News: China demands extradition charges be dropped.

China has demanded that the US drops an extradition request for a top Huawei executive, as the tech giant’s chief launched an unprecedented public relations blitz.

Huawei chief financial officer Meng Wanzhou, 46, was arrested on December 1 in Vancouver, Canada at the request of the US.

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Business Insider: Supreme Court hears a gun gase, first time in nine years.

...a challenge to New York City's prohibition on carrying a licensed, locked and unloaded handgun outside the city limits.

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CNN: John Kerry says "Trump should resign".

Former Secretary of State John Kerry said Tuesday that if he could speak to President Donald Trump directly, he would tell him to "resign."

Syria's Assad and Kerry; 2005

North Korea fires missile over Japan

From The Sydney Morning Herald:

North Korea fired a missile early on Tuesday from near Pyongyang that flew over northern Japan, the South Korean and Japanese governments said.

Public broadcaster NHK reported that the missile broke into three pieces and fell into the waters off Hokkaido, the northernmost of Japan's main islands.

More here at Radio Australia.

And here at the BBC.

So...what's the deal with Kimmy? Childish Tyrant? Death Wish? Not enough bran?

Kimmy II