Donald Trump Chooses Bitcoin Advocate J.D. Vance as Vice Presidential Running Mate

Cryptocurrency

Summary:

Trump picks Ohio Senator J.D. Vance as his 2024 VP candidate, highlighting Vance’s pro-Bitcoin stance.

Former President Donald Trump has selected Ohio Senator J.D. Vance as his vice presidential candidate for the 2024 election.

Trump’s decision stems from Vance’s support for Bitcoin and the broader crypto industry. Moreover, it highlights a strategic shift toward crypto’s growing influence in politics.

Crypto Leaders Applaud Vance’s VP Nomination

Trump announced this on Monday via his Truth Social account. In the post, Trump praised Vance’s military service, academic achievements, and career in technology and finance.

“J.D. has had a very successful business career in Technology and Finance, and now, during the Campaign, will be strongly focused on the people he fought so brilliantly for, the American Workers and Farmers in Pennsylvania, Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, Minnesota, and far beyond,” he wrote.

As a Yale Law School graduate and author of “Hillbilly Elegy,” Vance has been a vocal supporter of Bitcoin since his election to the Senate in 2022. His advocacy for digital assets is evident through his legislative efforts.

Vance has introduced and supported legislation in the Senate favoring digital assets. He opposes US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler’s stringent regulatory approach.

Furthermore, Vance’s stance to vote on repealing Staff Accounting Bulletin 121 (SAB 121), which restricts certain financial institutions from holding digital assets, demonstrates his commitment to a crypto-friendly regulatory environment. Additionally, according to federal financial disclosures, Vance has made a personal investment in Bitcoin, ranging between $100,001 and $250,000.

Prominent figures in the crypto industry have expressed support for Vance’s candidacy. Nic Carter, founder of Castle Island Ventures, praised Trump’s choice on his X account.

“J.D. is a great choice, former VC, and very good on crypto. Trump 2.0 is signaling a pro-tech, pro-Silicon Valley, pro-American dynamism outlook,” Carter wrote.

Charles Hoskinson, founder of Cardano, also commended Vance’s pro-crypto stance in a recent video. He acknowledged Vance’s significant contributions to the industry.

“He’s been a good friend to the cryptocurrency industry.So overall a good pick for our industry as a whole, and hopefully someone who can advise Trump, should he win on crypto policy in a way that would benefit the industry as a whole and the American people as a whole,” Hoskinson stated.

Trump Embraces Crypto: Genuine Shift or Political Move?

Trump’s campaign has increasingly branded itself as crypto-friendly. The former president has supported the industry through various gestures, including accepting cryptocurrency donations and speaking at the Bitcoin Conference 2024 in Nashville.

His efforts appear to be bearing fruit, garnering backing from several key industry figures. BeInCrypto reported earlier that the Winklevoss twins, the founders of crypto exchange Gemini, have donated $2 million in Bitcoin for Trump’s campaign. Additionally, a recent report by the Washington Post revealed that David Bailey, CEO of Bitcoin Magazine, will hold a fundraiser for Trump later this month.

Given his previous skepticism, Trump’s shifting stance on Bitcoin and the crypto industry is noteworthy. In 2019, he publicly denounced Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies as “not money” and “based on thin air.” Thus, this change raises questions about his sincerity and potential policy changes.

Arthur Hayes, founder of BitMEX, offered a critical perspective, suggesting that Trump’s support for crypto is politically motivated. Hayes emphasized that Trump’s pivot aims to capture votes from the crypto community in key swing states, rather than reflecting genuine belief.

“Given that a few thousand votes will decide the election in a handful of states, Trump and the Republican party are speaking pleasantries about crypto. I doubt the sincerity of Trump. He cares about getting elected and will say whatever it takes to get your vote. If Biden and the Democrats were pro-crypto, Trump would be anti-crypto. It’s just good politics,” Hayes said in his recent blog post.

Source: BeinCryto

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Warren Takunda

Cryptocurrency

Bitcoin shed over 3% on July 16 as what analysis called “FUD” involving defunct exchange Mt. Gox resurfaced. Bitcoin Price Sheds 3% as $6B Leaves Mt. Gox Cold Wallet_1

Bitcoin Price Sheds 3% as $6B Leaves Mt. Gox Cold Wallet_1

BTC/USD 1-hour chart. Source: TradingView

Mt. Gox Bitcoin outflows send price below $6,000

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC price action under pressure after hitting $65,000 on Bitstamp.

The downturn came as BTC belonging to Mt. Gox shifted between wallets affiliated with its rehabilitation program.

According to data from crypto intelligence firm Arkham, the amount involved totaled some 92,000 BTC (approximately $5.7 billion) in outflows from Mt. Gox’s cold wallet — around two thirds of the exchange’s total holdings. Bitcoin Price Sheds 3% as $6B Leaves Mt. Gox Cold Wallet_2

Bitcoin Price Sheds 3% as $6B Leaves Mt. Gox Cold Wallet_2

Mt. Gox cold wallet transactions (screenshot). Source: Arkham

“Mt. Gox moved 44,527 $BTC(2.84B) to an internal wallet 5 minutes ago, which may be preparing for repayment,” onchain analytics platform Look Into Bitcoin responded on X (formerly Twitter).

Similar events surrounding Mt. Gox, now due to distribute refunds to creditors who originally lost them when it was hacked and closed down more than a decade ago, have had a detrimental effect on price, with markets fearing mass BTC sales as a result.

Some, however, believe those fears do not match reality.

“And here is the next Bitcoin FUD,” popular crypto investor and YouTuber Quinten Francois wrote in part of an X reaction.

As Cointelegraph reported, sell-side pressure spooking markets in recent weeks also came from the German government, whose stocks of confiscated BTC are now depleted.

BTC price flirts with key "bull market trendline"

The flurry of concern disrupted what had been arguably Bitcoin’s best performance in months.

BTC/USD last saw $65,000 on June 21, a significant level being Bitcoin’s short-term holder cost basis.

Also known as realized price, the cost basis of speculators traditionally functions as support during bull markets, and had last been violated in August 2023.

Look Into Bitcoin put the short-term holder cost basis at $64,835 as of July 15. Bitcoin Price Sheds 3% as $6B Leaves Mt. Gox Cold Wallet_3

Bitcoin short-term holder realized price (screenshot). Source: Look Into Bitcoin

Source: Cointelegraph

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Warren Takunda

Central Bank

Economic

Huge debt piles among the world's biggest economies are starting to unnerve financial markets again, as elections cloud the fiscal outlook.

French bonds took a beating after a surprise election and hefty spending plans caused alarm. U.S. debt dynamics are in focus ahead of a November presidential election.

A debt crisis is not the base case, but investors are alert to the risk of looser purse strings sparking market stress.

"Deficits are back in focus," said Guy Miller, chief market strategist at Zurich Insurance Group.

"There needs to be more attention placed on not just the debt, but how to generate a growth dynamic – particularly in Europe," he added.

Here's a look at five big developed economies on the worry list:

1/ FRANCE

A surprise election was a rude awakening to investors who had previously looked past France's creaking public finances. With a budget gap at 5.5% of output last year, France faces European Union disciplinary measures.

France's bond risk premium over Germany briefly surged last month to the highest since 2012's debt crisis as the far right pushed ahead in the election race.

A leftist alliance ultimately won and a hung parliament may limit its spending plans but could also hamper any action to strengthen France's finances.

France's national audit office chief said on Monday there was no room for manoeuvre on the budget and debt must be reduced.

Even before a new government, the EU expected debt at around 139% of output, opens new tab by 2034, from 111% currently. France's risk premium has eased, but remains relatively high.

"There's going to be a permanent fiscal premium embedded in the price," said David Arnaud, fund manager at Canada Life Asset Management.

G7 Government Debt: The Next Market Hot Spot?_1

2/ UNITED STATES

The U.S is not far behind. The Congressional Budget Office reckons public debt will rise from 97% to 122% of output by 2034 - more than twice the average since 1994.

Growing expectations that Donald Trump will win November's presidential election have lifted Treasury yields recently as investors have priced in the risk of larger budget deficits and higher inflation. Some investors reckon the worst outcome for bond markets would be a Trump presidency with a Republican-led House of Representatives and Senate.

That would mean "we can get another round of fiscal stimulus... from a starting point in which the deficit is 6% of GDP," said Legal & General Asset Management's head of macro strategy Chris Jeffery.

While U.S. Treasuries are buffered by their safe-haven status, the yield curve is near its widest since January, reflecting the pressure facing longer-term borrowing costs.

G7 Government Debt: The Next Market Hot Spot?_2

3/ ITALY

Investors have praised nationalist Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni as market friendly. Yet last year's 7.4% budget deficit was the highest in the EU. So Italy also faces EU disciplinary measures that will test market optimism.

Italian bonds have outperformed their peers. But the risk premium on Italy's bonds briefly hit a four-month high in June, as French bonds sold off, reflecting how quickly jitters can spread.

Rome aims to lower the deficit to 4.3% this year, but has a dismal track record recently for meeting fiscal goals.

Home renovation incentives costing over 200 billion euros since 2020 will put upward pressure on Italian debt for years. The EU executive projects debt rising to 168% of output by 2034 from 137% now.

"You're not getting rewarded for the risk that you're running in Italy," said Christian Kopf, head of fixed income and FX at Union Investment.

G7 Government Debt: The Next Market Hot Spot?_3

4/ UK

Britain has gone down the worry list since 2022, when unfunded tax cuts by the then-Conservative government routed government bonds and sterling, forcing central bank intervention to stabilise markets and a policy U-turn.

A new Labour government, which has pledged to grow the economy while keeping spending tight, faces challenges, with public debt near 100% of GDP.

It could surge to more than 300% of economic output by the 2070s, Britain's budget forecasters said last year, with an ageing society, climate change and geopolitical tensions posing big fiscal risks.

Stronger economic growth is key to stabilising debt, says S&P Global.

G7 Government Debt: The Next Market Hot Spot?_4

Economic indicators showing where UK stands after 14 years of Conservative Party rule The chart shows the GDP growth of G7 countries from Q4 2019 with Britain highlighted.

5/ JAPAN

Japan's public debt stands at more than twice its economy, by far the biggest among industrialised economies.

That's not an immediate worry, because the bulk of Japanese debt is domestically owned, meaning those investors are less likely to flee at the first signs of stress. Overseas investors hold just about 6.5% of the country's government bonds.

Fitch Ratings reckons price increases and higher interest rates could benefit Japan's credit profile by inflating debt away.

There are still some reasons for concern.

Japan faces more than a two-fold increase in annual interest payments on government debt to 24.8 trillion yen ($169 billion) over the next decade, government estimates suggest.

So any sudden jump in Japanese bond yields as monetary policy normalises is worth watching. At just over 1%, 10-year yields are near their highest since 2011.

G7 Government Debt: The Next Market Hot Spot?_5

Source: Reuters

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Alex

Economic

Bond

India’s sovereign bond market is attracting foreign equity investors, who are using the securities as collateral for trade margin requirements.

The inclusion of the nation’s government debt in JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s emerging- market bond index last month has enhanced their acceptance as collateral. This development is appealing to overseas investors, as they can now earn interest on their bond holdings, unlike with traditional cash or cash-equivalent margin postings.

“These investors have bought front-end government securities with 1-2 year maturities,” said Vikas Jain, head of India fixed income, currencies and commodities trading at Bank of America Corp. “In this bucket, we’ve seen flows of $1.5 billion,” since the announcement of India’s inclusion in September, he said.

A combination of high yield, a stable currency and the possibility of capital appreciation has created a new demand segment for Indian government securities. The nation’s sovereign debt has returned 5.7% so far in 2024, versus a 2% gain in Indonesian local currency bonds, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

“Better inflation data should allow the Reserve Bank of India to ease monetary policy while expectations for the upcoming budget are benign in terms of the fiscal deficit,” increasing the appeal of local bonds, said Rajeev De Mello, global asset portfolio manager at Gama Asset Management SA.

Foreigners have plowed 978 billion rupees ($11.7 billion) into index-eligible bonds since JPMorgan announced their inclusion last year. The South Asian nation, which has been a favorite pick among investors looking away from China, has attracted equity inflows of $2.6 billion so far this year, adding to net overseas investments of $21 billion in 2023.

Overseas investors can use government securities, corporate bonds, cash, and triple-A rated foreign sovereign securities as collateral to meet their margin requirements for trades in both cash and equity derivatives segments, according to the securities regulator.

Source:Bloomberg

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Warren Takunda

Economic

Although the General Election did not result in fireworks for the Pound, analysts have widely considered the result as supportive from a longer-term perspective.

"The political risk discount embedded in the pound continues to dissipate," says Karl Schamotta, Chief Market Strategist at Corpay.

A measure of how risky investors perceive the Pound to be, the "volatility premium", has been shrinking for more than a year, notes Schamotta. It even turned negative ahead of the recent French elections.

Valentin Marinov, Head of G10 FX Strategy at Crédit Agricole, says the Pound could now be acting as a "safe haven (of sorts)".

"Returning political stability in the UK could contrast with the political gridlock that could result from the inconclusive French election. In particular, the latter could add a layer of uncertainty to the outlook for French public finances and thus the country’s sovereign credit risk," says Marinov.

Crédit Agricole says a boost to the safe-haven appeal of Pound Sterling relative to the Euro can weigh on the EUR/GBP exchange rate in the coming months. Pound Sterling's Safe-haven Status Returns_1

Pound Sterling's Safe-haven Status Returns_1

'Safe haven' demand for the Pound was last apparent during the Eurozone financial crisis of the early 2010s when money was diverted into Sterling assets. Investors questioned the future of the Eurozone as countries such as Greece suffered a severe debt crisis.

However, Prime Minister David Cameron's call for a Scottish independence referendum and the EU membership referendum opened cracks in the Pound's status as a reliable asset class. The Pound to Euro exchange rate began to fall in earnest in the months leading up to the June 2016 referendum.

The result of the vote saw the decline accelerate, and subsequent political turmoil under various Conservative Prime Ministers - most notably Liz Truss - kept the currency volatile and under pressure.

"Investors see an improving outlook for relations with the European Union, an end to fiscal experimentation, and a return to more stable political leadership translating into a burnishing of the UK’s long-dormant safe-haven credentials," says Schamotta.

Analysts at Barclays say the government's desire to improve the UK's Brexit deal with the EU can help shrink the Pound's 'Brexit premium'. In his first week in office, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said work had already begun to improve ties with the EU.

Lefteris Farmakis, an analyst at Barclays, says there is scope for a closer relationship with the EU and a further modest – but non-negligible – Brexit premium unwind in the Pound.

The Pound is 2024's best-performing G10 currency thanks to a combination of improving domestic economic growth, a cautious approach to cutting interest rates at the Bank of England and returning confidence in the UK's political landscape.

"The GBP has emerged as one of the best-performing G10 currencies since the UK general election on 4 July. We believe that the landslide Labour victory could usher in a period of political stability that, coupled with the party's supply-side reforms, could boost domestic investment," says Crédit Agricole's Marinov.

Analysts at Barclays have meanwhile raised projections for the Pound; "with growth momentum improving and carry support likely to remain in place throughout the cutting cycle, we now envisage larger (and more front-loaded) pound outperformance," says Farmakis.

Barclays holds a GBP/EUR forecast of 1.25 for the first quarter of 2025.

Source: Poundsterlinglive

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Cohen

Economic

Commodity

Wheat edged higher after deep losses, although the market is likely to face headwinds from improved crop prospects in Russia.

“Northern hemisphere harvest is still going on and wheat prices will remain under pressure,” said Dennis Voznesenski, a Commonwealth Bank analyst in Sydney.

“We are going to see higher prices towards the year end.” The most-active soybean contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) rose 0.1% to $10.41-1/2 a bushel, as of 0326 GMT, after dropping to its lowest since October 2020 on Monday.

Wheat gained 0.1% at $5.33-1/4 a bushel and corn added 0.6% to $4.06-3/4 a bushel.

After the market closed on Monday, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) rated 68% of the US corn and soybean crops in “good to excellent” condition, unchanged from the previous week.

The ratings fell short of analyst expectations for a slight improvement, but were still the highest for this time of year for both crops since 2020.

Analysts said US crops benefited last week from the remnants of Hurricane Beryl, which brought showers to dry areas of the eastern Midwest crop belt.

More rain fell over the weekend, and forecasts called for milder temperatures this week after a spell of hot weather.

“The rainfall in the north-central Midwest over-performed expectations from Friday and favoured corn and soybeans,” satellite technology company Maxar said in a daily crop weather note.

Improved weather in the US Midwest has boosted corn and soybean prospects.

Brazilian farmers in the key center-south region had harvested 74% of their second corn crop for the 2024 cycle, as of last Thursday, up from 63% in the previous week, agribusiness consultancy AgRural said on Monday.

The pace of work was well above the 36% level seen a year earlier, as farmers in large states such as Mato Grosso enjoyed good weather during the harvest.

The US soy crush declined in June and fell below most trade estimates but was still the highest on record for the sixth month of the year, according to National Oilseed Processors Association (NOPA) data released on Monday.

Wheat has faced pressure in recent weeks by the Northern Hemisphere winter wheat harvest and prospects of sizable crops in top exporter Russia and the United States.

Russia’s IKAR agricultural consultancy raised its forecast for the country’s wheat crop to 83.2 million metric tons, from 82 million tons previously.

The USDA on Friday raised its projection of the US 2024 wheat harvest to 2.008 billion bushels, topping a range of analysts’ expectations.

Commodity funds were net sellers of Chicago Board of Trade corn, soybean, wheat and soymeal futures contracts on Monday and net buyers of CBOT soyoil futures, traders said.

Source:Reuters

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Warren Takunda

Economic

At a nearly 40-year low versus the dollar, the yen and its sharp weakening are exercising the minds of Japanese government officials and central bankers racing to come up with an urgent, cogent policy response.

Households in Japan face a 90,000 yen ($570) jump in annual expenses from higher prices for food and energy imports, one estimate shows, as the currency's skid drains purchasing power.

In the real-world economy, from the shop floor to the C-suite, Japan Inc. is wrestling with one of the starkest manifestations of enyasu, or a weak yen: how to hire and retain the overseas workers and executive talent it needs amid a national labor shortage. Even as Japan has moved to ease work visa restrictions, the currency's slide means immigrant workers can make much more money in other countries to send home in the form of remittances.

For some companies, the response is as obvious as it is painful -- hike wages to attract overseas workers and pass the cost on to consumers, fueling inflation pressures.

In one case last year, Japanese housekeeping service provider Bears, which relies partly on young, qualified workers from the Philippines, raised its service fees for the first time in 18 years, by up to 20%. In the previous fiscal year, Bears' revenue topped 6 billion yen.

In low-margin, competitive businesses, however, as well as at smaller outfits, big wage increases are not a viable long-term option, even as newly introduced restrictions on working time -- Japan's so-called '2024 problem' -- make labor harder to source, both domestically and internationally. Japan's New Enemy in Fight to Lure Immigrant Workers: The Tumbling Yen_1

Japan's New Enemy in Fight to Lure Immigrant Workers: The Tumbling Yen_1

"My salary has remained the same," said Spandan Sunar, a 27-year-old Nepalese citizen. Sunar works at a transportation company in Chiba, east of Tokyo, as a contractor, and used to send about 50,000 yen per month back to his family in Nepal when he first arrived in 2018.

To send the equivalent amount now would cost Sunar 80,000 yen a month, extra money he can't afford. That means sending less back to Nepal. And while he used to save 30,000 yen per month, he has had to reduce that amount amid rising cost of living pressures.

"Foreigners working in Japan are struggling with low-income problems," he said.

Sunar wistfully compared his situation to Nepalese friends earning higher salaries in the U.S. and Australia, noting that some considered moving to Japan before opting to go elsewhere. But for Sunar, abandoning his current location would mean also jettisoning considerable effort spent learning Japanese and navigating the country's bureaucracy.

According to a 2024 survey by human resource company Mynavi Global, 91% of foreign students and workers living in Japan said they wanted to remain in the country. But that represented a 5.8 percentage point drop from 2022. The top reason cited for not wanting to work in the country? The weak yen.

Even minus the currency factor, Japanese wage levels have long been modest, depressed by decades of deflation and low growth after the bursting of Japan's asset bubble in the early 1990s.

Japan's average monthly earnings were $2,800, way lower than $4,600 in the U.S. or $3,483 in Singapore, according to International Labor Organization numbers for 2021, the most recent year for which data was available.

The yen's dramatically rapid slump has made matters worse. The currency has skidded from about 130 yen to the dollar at the beginning of 2023 to beyond 160 yen this month.

Some companies have touted more flexible working conditions as a strategy to recruit overseas hires. Japanese payment service PayPay has been offering remote working options to attract talented engineers.

"You can work from anywhere in Japan, including resorts, with our fully remote working style," a spokesperson told Nikkei Asia. The company said it now has engineers working remotely from tourist destinations all over Japan, and "we have not seen any negative impact on hiring due to the weakening yen."

Still, that potential solution might not be suitable for less skilled jobs.

"Relatively low-wage workers, such as technical intern trainees, workers in service and manufacturing industries are the most affected by the weak yen," said Hiroo Yamanouchi, a partner and the head of career consulting at Mercer Japan.

Yamanouchi said that one implication of the yen's weakening has been that the range of countries where lower-skilled workers are coming from is becoming limited to low-wage countries such as Indonesia, Myanmar, Cambodia and Bangladesh.

In Vietnam, for example, there has been a decline in the number of people willing to come to Japan to earn money as its economy has developed, according to Yamanouchi.

At household services provider Bears, some staff from the Philippines have been cutting back on their living and leisure expenses, a company representative told Nikkei Asia.

While no existing employees have left for other countries because of the exchange rate, the representative said, the weaker yen "cannot be a positive thing for hiring. ... It is scary what kind of ripple effect there would be if the yen continues to depreciate further."

To be sure, as Shinji Yamazaki at human resource company Career-tasu explained, non-Japanese students who come to Japan because they like the country tend to want to work and stay, regardless of the opportunities for higher-paid jobs abroad.

Japanese is unique compared to other languages, and "has an effect of making people less likely to leave Japan once they have mastered it."

But without wage hikes, "if the weak yen trend continues, it could lead to declines in the number of people who want to come to Japan in the future," said Yamazaki, who is deputy director of Career-tatsu's global business development department. Japan's New Enemy in Fight to Lure Immigrant Workers: The Tumbling Yen_2

Japan's New Enemy in Fight to Lure Immigrant Workers: The Tumbling Yen_2

One sector where Japanese companies are particularly exposed to global competition in luring talent is information technology, as businesses confront skills gaps in their digital transformation efforts.

According to human resources company Human Resocia, Japan's IT engineer remuneration in 2023 declined by 5.9% in U.S. dollar terms compared to the previous year, while it increased by 0.4% in yen. The average annual pay level was $36,061, a little more than a third of the $92,378 it was in the U.S. according to calculations based on average exchange rates between January and September 2023.

For white-collar jobs, Kevin Naylor, chief executive of Future Manager World USA and former director at talent search agency en world Japan, said companies in Japan have tended to prefer to hire native citizens or foreigners already in Japan.

Still, "the areas where there have been more opportunities to hire non-Japanese have been in technology," Naylor said.

Luke Furnival, who covers the technology market as associate director of recruitment company Robert Walters Japan, said, "There is usually a significant gap between what [candidates] expect and what they can make" in Japan. "Over the last couple of years, we've had to really focus on managing that expectation more than previous years."

According to Furnival, some companies have adjusted their strategies on securing the necessary workforce. "A lot of clients opt for more outsourcing models," he said, in which they contract with global vendors who offer digital skills either offshore or locally.

As the yen weakens, it is becoming more costly to hire from overseas. On June 27, it took almost 161 yen to buy a dollar.

Costs are also rising for companies looking to fill their top management positions.

The cost of hiring executives "usually becomes twice or three times higher than just hiring the local leaders or promoting [employees from] within," according to Junichi Takinami, country managing director of Korn Ferry Japan.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, citing the sensitivity of the matter, one recruitment firm representative told Nikkei Asia that one client, a major manufacturer, in the last six months stopped looking to fill executive positions with candidates outside Japan. "They just cannot compete," he said.

When companies do try to bring in international C-suite executives, they generally have to offer the same or higher compensation than the candidate already gets in dollar terms. "Cost surely is higher due to the weak yen for companies," said Kenichi Iwata, Tokyo Office Leader of headhunting outfit Egon Zehnder.

In some cases, companies have no alternative but to look abroad to fill talent gaps in Japan.

"If [companies] are sourcing [talent from abroad] to solve an issue, a skill set or a product capability that the company doesn't have that they must have, then compensation is secondary," suggested Peter Rackowe, Korn Ferry Japan's head of executive and professional search. Japan's New Enemy in Fight to Lure Immigrant Workers: The Tumbling Yen_3

Japan's New Enemy in Fight to Lure Immigrant Workers: The Tumbling Yen_3

Rackowe referred to offshore wind as an area where Japanese companies have been searching abroad for executives and specialists.

"There is an awareness by [Japanese] companies that there is a certain skill set that they need to have, that Japan may not have as much of" compared to other places such as Europe, he said.

Meanwhile, the weak yen's impact isn't restricted to hiring overseas.

While there isn't yet a widespread "brain drain" of Japanese talent away from its home country, according to most of the human resource companies contacted by Nikkei Asia, there are some early indications of movement.

"We are seeing more Japanese senior executives wanting to relocate to Singapore, Malaysia and Vietnam," said Christopher Delcourt, Japan country manager of recruitment company Hyre.

Relocating overseas for Japanese high-earning nationals has always been attractive in terms of countries applying lower income tax.

"Now with the weak yen, it is an extra element that they are taking into consideration," since they can earn more in U.S. dollar terms, Delcourt said.

While weak yen pressures mount, Nepalese contractor Sunar is in Japan for the long haul, he said, aiming to work and save money for another 10 years before returning to Nepal to build his own store.

But a Nepalese friend of his has already quit Japan to try his luck making more money in the United States.

"I believe that more foreign workers, especially from developing countries, will move out of Japan to countries with higher incomes such as ones in Europe and the U.S.," Sunar said.