Improvements continue.

More on japan:

• http://www.personal-view.com/talks/discussion/10351/japan-debt-reached-1025000000000000-yen
• http://www.personal-view.com/talks/discussion/2649/japan-march-day-march-day-fuck...-mayday-mayday/p1

Bank of Japan officials see significant scope to boost government bond purchases if needed to achieve their inflation target, according to people familiar with the discussions, signaling little concern with perceptions of underwriting fiscal deficits.

While no decision will be made until the central bank has more time to assess price trends, the current pace of asset purchases -- equivalent to 70 percent of new government-debt issuance -- isn’t a limit for many officials, according to the people, who asked not to be named as the talks are private.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-12-18/boj-said-to-see-significant-room-for-more-bond-purchases.html

Japan should continue to use nuclear power as a key energy source despite the Fukushima power plant disaster, a government panel said Friday in a reversal of a phase-out plan by the previous government. The draft energy plan issued by the panel underscores Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s push to restart as many nuclear reactors as possible under new, stricter safety requirements that took effect this past summer.

Oops!

Get out the extra blankets.