Equities Weekly: Attractive Valuations and Stability Boosts Japan Equities to 3-Decade High
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Chief Investment Office24 May 2023
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Japan Equities: Attractive valuations and foreign investments boost Nikkei to 3-decade high. Following the G7 meetings in Hiroshima, the Nikkei 225 broke 30,000 points for the first time in three decades, outperforming the majority of its G7 peers. This outperformance could be largely attributed to the following points:

  1. Stability: While geopolitical tensions run high among other nations, Japan remains an oasis of calm. Economic security and supply chain stability were key reasons cited when some of the world’s biggest chipmakers (TSMC, Samsung, and Micron) revealed plans to build new facilities in Japan. 
  2. Attractive valuations: TOPIX’s P/E is currently trading at 13.2x forward earnings, compared to 16.4x of DMs and 12.4x of EMs. Even after the recent rally, the index’s P/B ratio remains at c.1.3x, around its 10-year average. Almost half of the TSE Prime market index members are trading below book value, compared to 5% of the S&P 500.
  3. Foreign investments: Since legendary investor Warren Buffet first invested USD6b into five of Japan’s largest trading in August 2020, many other investors have followed suit. According to data from Japan Exchange Group, foreign investors bought JPY2.15t net worth of shares in April – the biggest foreign net purchase since October 2017.
We see rising optimism in Japanese equities and remain hopeful that the current uptrend has long-term sustainability.

Figure 1: Japan trades as attractive multiples compared to DM peers

Source: Bloomberg, DBS as at 23 May 2023


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