Japan warns of severe finances

The finance minister of Japan, Shunichi Suzuki, warns that the country faces dire finances as debt and inflation continue to rise while the population keeps declining. The government can still borrow cheaply as the central bank keeps interest rates at ultra-low levels. But what do the financial markets and global investors make of Japan’s current economic state? The US hedge fund Citadel made $16bn in profits last year, the largest annual profit by a hedge fund in history. We find out how they did it. And the presidents of Brazil and Argentina have announced that they want to work towards the creation of a South American single currency. We explore how likely this is to happen.