The head of Japan's Government Pension Investment Fund has hit out at pressure to rebalance its bond-heavy portfolio, arguing that his Y124tn ($1.2tn)-in-assets institution should not be used as a tool to push up stock prices.
Since Prime Minister Shinzo Abe took power in December 2012 with a promise to haul Japan out of deflation, he has held out the prospect of more determined stock-buying by the GPIF as one of the main reasons for other investors to increase exposure to the world's second biggest equity market.Last November an advisory panel handpicked by Mr Abe urged the GPIF to swap bonds for stocks without delay, while a report from the Financial Services Agency a month later endorsed the panel's proposals as one of half a dozen ways to boost Japan's capital markets "immediately."
But in an interview with the Financial Times, GPIF president Takahiro Mitani said such demands were unfair on an institution that has been functionally independent from government since 2006.
The FSA "should be doing what they are supposed to be doing, without asking too much from us," he said, adding that the calls for trillions of yen of bond sales from panel chairman Takatoshi Ito showed he "lacks understanding of the practical issues of this portfolio."
Source: Financial Times
But in an interview with the Financial Times, GPIF president Takahiro Mitani said such demands were unfair on an institution that has been functionally independent from government since 2006.
The FSA "should be doing what they are supposed to be doing, without asking too much from us," he said, adding that the calls for trillions of yen of bond sales from panel chairman Takatoshi Ito showed he "lacks understanding of the practical issues of this portfolio."
Source: Financial Times
