Rate hikes and geopolitics concern Japanese issuers

After more than two years of dealing with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, Japan’s leading credits are putting recovery and capital market access at the top of their agendas. But in 2022, they face fresh challenges — rising dollar interest rates amid continued low interest rates in Japan, as well as geopolitical conflicts that have added new bouts of volatility to global markets. In these difficult times, the country’s top borrowers are making ESG a bigger focus, while emphasising the need to be agile and flexible.