Where are the opportunities after a 'difficult year' for Japanese equities?

clock • 2 min read

Last year was challenging for Japanese equities.

While we usually prefer to talk about the companies rather than the economy, it was interesting to note that 85% of trades last year were on auto-pilot - controlled by machines, futures traders and quant funds. What does a declining population mean for Japan? The TOPIX fell to around 12x forward price-to-earnings (close to where it was during the 2008 and 2012 downturns) and foreign capital flows amplified the level of volatility in the market - with a record ¥12.5trn of Japanese cash equities and futures contracts sold down over the year. However, during periods of market dislocat...

To continue reading this article...

Join Investment Week for free

  • Unlimited access to real-time news, analysis and opinion from the investment industry, including the Sustainable Hub covering fund news from the ESG space
  • Get ahead of regulatory and technological changes affecting fund management
  • Important and breaking news stories selected by the editors delivered straight to your inbox each day
  • Weekly members-only newsletter with exclusive opinion pieces from leading industry experts
  • Be the first to hear about our extensive events schedule and awards programmes

Join now

 

Already an Investment Week
member?

Login

More on Asia

 abrdn's Yeo and Kwik: Will the dragon soar in 2024 for China?

abrdn's Yeo and Kwik: Will the dragon soar in 2024 for China?

'Cause to be optimistic'

Elizabeth Kwik and Nicholas Yeo
clock 09 February 2024 • 4 min read
What happened to China in 2023?

What happened to China in 2023?

Nine experts debate

Investment Week
clock 16 January 2024 • 5 min read
China unveils new blue-chip index in bid to boost investment in Beijing listings

China unveils new blue-chip index in bid to boost investment in Beijing listings

CSI A50 index

Eve Maddock-Jones
clock 05 January 2024 • 1 min read
Trustpilot