* Nikkei 225 Stock Average: +12.45 (+0.1%) to 18,053.38
* Nikkei 225 futures Osaka: +40 (+0.2%) to 18,080
* TOPIX 1st Section: +1.22 (+0.1%) to 1,779.72; Advancers 899 x decliners 702 (unchanged 131), new highs 90 x new lows 32; 19/33 sectors posted gains
* JASDAQ: -0.08 (-0.1%) to 81.13

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The following excerpt arrived in my daily Asia alerts email from The Wall Street Journal:
JOURNAL’S FUTURE: Amid the news that the Bancroft family may soon sell The Wall Street Journal’s parent company, Dow Jones & Co., to Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. or some other bidder, our editorial writers say it’s important to note that capitalism […]

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New Zealand’s central bank hiked a quarter-point to 8%, a record, and the NZ$ rose to a 22-year high. NZ’s benchmark rate is second-highest among countries with the best crediting ratings, behind only Iceland. [Source: FT / FT Alphaville]
There’s been a slight strengthening of the yen in recent trading that is unlikely to persist. Current […]

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Below are two pieces from Wed.’s FT Alphaville’s The 6am Cut I’d like to share:
(1) “Overworked, understaffed, banks fear errors” — In short, executives at the world’s top i-banks admit their staff are under pressure from the record volume of M&A activity. [By the way, I read on a WSJ Deal newsletter / […]

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