Tokyo

BANK of Japan (BOJ) easing has raised the prospect of the nation's first bond auction in which the government is paid to borrow.

Two-year yields dropped to a record minus 0.04 per cent in the secondary market on Dec 19 after the central bank pushed forward with a plan to increase the amount of Japanese government bonds it purchases at an annual pace of 80 trillion yen (S$880 billion). While the average yield at a treasury-bill auction dropped below zero per cent in October, a negative figure at a two-year offering this week would be the first for the nation's coupon-bearing notes.