Latest news with #JapaneseStocks
Free Malaysia Today
05-06-2025
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
Foreigners return to Japanese bonds on yield appeal
Japanese stocks remained popular for the ninth week in a row as they secured approximately US$336.1 billion worth of cross-border inflows. (EPA Images pic) TOKYO : Japanese long-term bonds attracted net foreign inflows for the first time in five weeks in the week through May 31 as foreign investors locked into higher yields on expectations that the finance ministry will reduce the issuance of ultra-long-term debt. According to Japan's finance ministry data released today, foreigners snapped up a net ¥1.17 trillion (US$8.18 billion) worth of Japanese long-term bonds in their largest weekly net purchase since April 12. They also bought a net ¥414.8 billion worth of short-term bills during the week. Yields on 30- and 40-year Japanese government bonds eased about 12 and 47 basis points, respectively, last week after reaching record highs in the previous week on concerns over weak demand at government auctions. However, for foreign investors swapping dollars or euros into yen, yields are much higher because of the advantageous yen swap rates. Japanese stocks, meanwhile, remained popular for the ninth week in a row as they secured approximately US$336.1 billion worth of cross-border inflows during the week. At the same time, Japanese investors divested a sharp ¥1.14 trillion worth of foreign equities during the week, registering their largest weekly net sales since Feb 8. They also withdrew ¥118 billion from long-term foreign debt instruments, ending their three-week-long buying spree.
Free Malaysia Today
29-05-2025
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
Japanese long-term bonds see 4th weekly outflow on inflation, fiscal concerns
Japanese stocks remained popular for an eighth successive week as foreigners added a net ¥309.3 billion worth of domestic shares to their portfolios. (Bloomberg pic) TOKYO : Foreigners sold Japanese long-term bonds for a fourth straight week through May 24, adding to evidence that investors are exiting long-term bonds in crowded developed markets owing to worries about inflation and interest rates. According to Japan's finance data ministry, foreigners withdrew a net ¥334.4 billion (US$2.3 billion) from long-term Japanese bonds in a fourth successive weekly net sale. Short-term bills also witnessed a net ¥2.41 trillion of outflows, the highest for a week since Dec 21, 2024. Long-dated bonds have come under pressure globally in recent weeks, with Japan seeing sharp sell-offs as the central bank scales back bond purchases and a political debate over stimulus intensifies. Yields on 30- and 40-year Japanese government bonds have surged to record highs, as demand at auctions for ultra-long debt weakens, prompting officials to weigh shifting issuance toward shorter maturities. Meanwhile, Japanese stocks remained popular for an eighth successive week as foreigners added a net ¥309.3 billion worth of domestic shares to their portfolios. In parallel, Japanese investors bought a modest ¥92 billion of foreign long-term bonds, a sharp reduction in net purchases from 2.83 trillion of net accumulation in the prior week. They, however, sold about ¥42.7 billion of short-term bills. In overseas equities markets, domestic investors were net sellers for a second straight week to the tune of ¥524.7 billion.
Bloomberg
26-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Japan Stocks to Fluctuate as Yen Drops on New EU Tariff Deadline
Japanese stocks may fluctuate after the yen weakened against the dollar as US President Donald Trump said he would extend the deadline for the European Union to face 50% tariffs until July 9. Nikkei 225 futures were at 37,210 on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, compared with the last close of 37,160.47 for the underlying gauge. The yen retreated after the latest comments from Trump, who last week threatened to impose aggressive tariffs on the EU and Apple Inc.
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Warren Buffett's Successor Would Love to Buy 5X More of These Stocks. Here's Why They're Good Picks for Other Investors, Too.
Buffett and his successor, Greg Abel, are fans of five Japanese stocks. Abel plans for Berkshire Hathaway to own these stocks for decades and would love to boost its stake by 5x in each of them. Although Berkshire can't buy as much of the five stocks as Abel would like, the stocks are good picks for other investors. 10 stocks we like better than Itochu › No one can fill Warren Buffett's shoes. However, he's passing the baton as Berkshire Hathaway's CEO to a worthy successor in Greg Abel. Abel currently leads Berkshire Hathaway Energy. He also serves as vice chair of Berkshire's non-insurance operations. Come January 2026, he'll move into the CEO spot long held by Buffett. As Buffett has done for years, Abel will make the final investment decisions for Berkshire's portfolio once he becomes CEO. If you're wondering what kind of stocks Abel might like, you won't have to guess too hard. Buffett's successor recently revealed five stocks for which he'd love to increase Berkshire's stake by 5x. Buffett has typically focused primarily on U.S. stocks. However, in 2019 he became interested in five Japanese stocks: Itochu (OTC: ITOCF) (OTC: ITOCY), Marubeni (OTC: MARUF) (OTC: MARUY), Mitsubishi (OTC: MSBHF) (OTC: MTSU.Y), Mitsui (OTC: MITSF) (OTC: MITSY), and Sumitomo (OTC: SSUM.F) (OTC: SSUM.Y). The business models of these five Japanese companies are very similar. All of them are soga shosha, the Japanese term for trading houses. Their operations span multiple industries, including energy, financial services, food, manufacturing, materials, and more. Each of these five companies pays attractive dividends. All except Itochu sport dividend yields of over 3%. Itochu's yield is a more modest 2.2%. Probably the biggest difference between the Japanese companies is their size. Mitsubishi is the largest with a market cap of around $80 billion. Itochu and Mitsui trail with market caps of $74 billion and $60 billion, respectively. Marubeni and Sumitomo are the smallest of the group, with both companies' market caps hovering around $31 billion to $32 billion. At Berkshire Hathaway's annual shareholder meeting earlier this month, Buffett mentioned that around six years ago, he began reviewing a book with information about roughly 2,000 to 3,000 Japanese companies. He noticed that Itochu, Marubeni, Mitsubishi, Mitsui, and Sumitomo traded "at ridiculously low prices." The attractive valuations of these Japanese stocks piqued his interest. Berkshire started buying shares of each of the companies. Buffett said, "And then we got to know the people better, and everything that Greg [Abel] and I saw, we liked better as we went along." In his most recent letter to Berkshire shareholders, Buffett listed three things that he and Abel especially like about the five companies: (1) how they deploy capital, (2) their management teams, and (3) their alignment with shareholders. The two Berkshire Hathaway executives appreciated the Japanese companies' commitment to strong dividends and stock buybacks when appropriate. Abel said at the Berkshire shareholder meeting that he envisions holding positions in Itochu, Marubeni, Mitsubishi, Mitsui, and Sumitomo "for 50 years or forever." He added: It's too bad that Berkshire has gotten as big as it is because we love that position and I'd like it to be a lot larger. Even with the five companies being very large in Japan, we've got at market in the range of $20 billion invested, but I'd rather have $100 billion than $20 billion. Berkshire can't increase its stakes in the Japanese stocks by 5x as things stand now. The conglomerate initially agreed to keep its holdings below 10% of each company's outstanding shares. Buffett wrote in the latest shareholder letter that this ceiling has been increased moderately, but Abel probably won't be able to buy as much of Itochu, Marubeni, Mitsubishi, Mitsui, and Sumitomo as he'd like. While Berkshire can't scoop up much more of these Japanese stocks, other investors can. I think they're good picks for the same reasons Buffett and Abel like them. All five stocks continue to trade at attractive valuations. Sumitomo looks especially cheap, with its trailing-12-month price-to-earnings ratio of 8.12. As mentioned previously, these Japanese trading houses offer solid dividends. Marubeni has even more than tripled its dividend payout over the last three years. Mitsui has more than doubled its dividend during the same period. Like Berkshire Hathaway itself, Itochu, Marubeni, Mitsubishi, Mitsui, and Sumitomo provide a tremendous amount of diversification as well. Buying these Japanese stocks isn't too different than investing in an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that owns stocks in multiple sectors. Aggressive growth investors might not be interested in these soga shosha stocks. However, investors willing to patiently wait for steady growth should consider buying shares of one or more of the Japanese trading houses. When Buffett and Abel are so impressed with specific stocks that they want to own them for decades, it's worth paying attention. Before you buy stock in Itochu, consider this: The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the for investors to buy now… and Itochu wasn't one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years. Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $640,662!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you'd have $814,127!* Now, it's worth noting Stock Advisor's total average return is 963% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 168% for the S&P 500. Don't miss out on the latest top 10 list, available when you join . See the 10 stocks » *Stock Advisor returns as of May 19, 2025 Keith Speights has positions in Berkshire Hathaway. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Berkshire Hathaway. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Warren Buffett's Successor Would Love to Buy 5X More of These Stocks. Here's Why They're Good Picks for Other Investors, Too. was originally published by The Motley Fool
Bloomberg
12-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Japanese Stocks Set to Rise on US-China Tariff De-Escalation
Japanese stocks are set to extend their winning streak after the US and China agreed to a massive de-escalation in tariffs, sending the yen lower and boosting global equities. Nikkei 225 futures were at 38,720.00 on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange, compared with the last close of 37,644.26 for the underlying gauge. A gain in the broader Topix on Tuesday would drive the gauge higher for a 13th straight day, the longest rally since August 2009.
