Japanese Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) held an unusually timed
management committee meeting on Aug. 21 — its first August meeting in seven
years — prompting market speculation the country’s largest pension fund may
increase its allocation to Japanese government bonds (JGBs). Agenda materials
show the session included a report from the team responsible for asset
allocation and investment operations; the committee had in March concluded there
was no need to revisit asset allocation. In a note, JP Morgan strategist Ikue
Saito said revisiting the topic only five months later was highly unusual and
suggests the committee may be reassessing its prior stance, likely driven by the
sharp rise in JGB yields since March.
