News & Insights

In July, the Japanese equity market saw significant fluctuations. At the start of the month the Nikkei 225 and TOPIX indices reached new historic highs riding the wave of the weak yen and strong US markets but ultimately ended the month in negative territory, dropping by 1.2% and 0.5% respectively. The end of the month saw the yen surge to the 149 yen to the dollar level, a sharp increase from the 38 year low of 161.7 yen/dollar that was seen at the start of the month.

[EXTERNAL LINK] SuMi TRUST's Chief Strategist, Katsutoshi Inadome shares his views on the likelihood of an interest rate hike ahead of the Bank of Japan's monetary policy meeting.

[External Link] In this piece published by Wealth Briefing, Katsunori Ogawa, Chief Portfolio Manager of the Sakigake High Alpha at SuMi TRUST, discusses the opportunities and challenges that are presented by Japan's current tourism boom.

In June, Japanese equities saw gains with the Nikkei 225 and TOPIX indices rising by 1.3% and 2.8% respectively, driven by factors such as semiconductor stock rebounds, dividend reinvestment, the weak yen and positive sentiment regarding the performance of US equities. There was some volatility earlier in the month, but the market stabilised towards the end.