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Thursday, December 4, 2025

US Japan debt addiction for 4 decades has ended; higher borrowing rates for US, $20 trillion carry trade in danger of collapsing

It is more fun criticizing

This is not going to be good for US market and Japan.  Japan has more than 250% of its debt vs GDP and for a long time has fed US with less than market % for its debt.  Japan accumulates trade deficit with US over.  It has increased its bond rate up to 2% ending the period of free source of funds for arbitrage (borrowing yen for higher yield investment)  Japan supported both deficits of US:   trade and  budget.

What has happened?   Japan has decided to grant stimulus package to companies because of static growth of the economy.  To finance this QE, Japan has to unload some of its treasuries   (Which will not go unnoticed by the world financial market).    This puts pressure on US borrowing, now saddled with $37 trillion in debt, higher servicing of its debt, now at 15% of GDP and $1.2 debt servicing.   With the QE, the Yen is devaluing and Japan has to prop up its currency

Its now over, the yen is on free fall and very likely its going to be devalued and Japan economy could collapse.  Japan was a big headache for IMF for a long time according to former boss Lagarde.

Japan used to be the 2nd largest economy in the world after US, and was the hotbed of manufacturing.  But now its famous brands have fallen:   Toshiba, Sharp, National, Sony.    Now Japan is campaigning itself as a tourist destination.   Do you  think that this is Karma for Japan, following its atrocities in WW 2.?

What are the other consequences.   The carry trade.   Arbiters and currency traders, borrowed from Japanese banks at zero or near zero interest and used the same to hedge:   buy other currencies, invest in foreign stocks etc to gain some tidy profit.  However this feast is over, as the Japanese bonds are now more expensive.   So companies on carry trade have to cash out or drown under water.  This business, totaling $20 trillion could cause massive strain on world financial liquidity, even for US

This also means that US debt US treasuries will mean more interest expense for US homebuyers and consumer finance from credit cards.  

China is also dumping US treasuries due to political and trade tensions And with both China and Japan US two biggest creditors dumping US treasuries, US will find itself paying more for debt and even a liquidity crisis

Also note the end of US Petrodollar and Chinas payment system bypassing SWIFT and BRICS nation bypassing the US dollar altogether.  When Eurodollar and Petrodollar start coming home to roost, watch how more US dollars coming home means hyper inflation for USA.