TOKYO -- Japan intends to reduce its annual float of 40-year bonds for the first time in fiscal 2018, expecting demand to slacken as changing consumer preferences and years of low interest rates send investors elsewhere.
Though the Finance Ministry lowered its initial target for overall issuance of Japanese government bonds this fiscal year by 8.2 trillion yen ($73 billion), it raised the amount of 40-year bonds by 600 billion yen, with no change in 30-year debt floats. Total issuance appears likely to decline again next fiscal year, but with ultralong JGBs joining the trend.
