Japan, a heavily indebted country, is not known for its fiscal hawks. Yet for a few weeks in May austere types were ascendant. As long-dated bond yields surged worldwide, the Japanese market wobbled and their warnings seemed prescient. After a dodgy auction revealed weak investor demand, 40-year yields reached 3.7%, a record, having started the year at 2.6%. Was a buyer’s strike afoot? Ishiba Shigeru, the prime minister, certainly seemed worried: “Our country’s fiscal situation is undoubtedly extremely poor, worse than Greece,” he told parliament on May 19th.
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