Japan's "whale" to boost ratio of foreign bonds in its portfolio by 10%

Japan's GPIF, the world's largest pension fund, raises its allocation of foreign bonds in its portfolio from 15% to 25%

The change will go into effect on the new fiscal year i.e. 1 April, if the fund is able to obtain approval on the plan. Once confirmed, the fund will announce the changes on 31 March.

This matters quite a bit to the yen as an increase in foreign bond purchases could result in weakness in the yen on flow-based movement. For some context, the GPIF houses around ¥160 trillion worth of funds and is often referred to as the "whale" in Japan.