Global Market Turmoil Triggers Tumult in Tokyo

Speculation rose Friday that the Bank of Japan would call an emergency meeting prior to its next scheduled session in mid-March amid a surging yen and plunging equity prices. Observers are saying the central bankers might push interest rates even further below zero and expand an asset purchase program that already totals about $710 billion (80 trillion yen) annually. Japan’s benchmark stock index, the Nikkei 225, fell to a 16-month low Friday, down 760 points; a drop of more than 4.8...

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