On Friday (December 27th), the benchmark Nikkei 225 index of the Japanese stock market closed at its highest level since July this year at 40281.16 points.
Takeo Kamai, the head of execution services at Lyon Securities in Tokyo, commented that the market has been affected by the "Santa Claus rebound" trend and the prospect that "Japanese corporate giants will take more investor friendly actions".
Kamai added that the news of the merger between the two giants Honda and Nissan, coupled with Toyota's plan to increase its return on equity (ROE), "some cautious opportunistic investors may ignite the trend of 'buying Japanese stocks' again next year
Given that the Japanese stock market will be closed next Tuesday, there is only one last trading day left in 2024. Since the beginning of the year, the Nikkei 225 index has risen by 20.37%, and is expected to see a significant increase for the second consecutive year.
As of press time, among major global stock markets, the Nikkei Index has outperformed the German DAX30 Index and the Dow Jones Index in terms of annual gains, lagging behind the S&P 500 Index and the Nasdaq Composite Index.
Vertically speaking, the Nikkei 225 index is expected to close above 40000 points for the first time at the end of the year. Prior to this year, the historical peak of the index was slightly below 39000 points, and the time of recording this 38900 points can be traced back to 35 years ago.
In the 1980s, the Japanese stock market rose steadily and reached its peak in 1989. But since 1990, with the bursting of the economic foam, the stock market began to fall like a precipice. In 2008, it once fell below 7000 points.
It was not until 2012 that the Abe government launched "Abenomics", and the following year, the then Governor of the Bank of Japan, Haruhiko Kuroda, implemented a large-scale monetary stimulus policy, that the Japanese stock market began a decade long comeback.
In 2024, the Nikkei 225 index finally broke through the level of the foam era, driven by the buyback of shares by companies, activist funds and retail investors. When the Nikkei hit a new high in July, the TSE share price index also exceeded the peak in the foam era.
At the beginning of the year, it was mentioned that the Japanese stock market "will usher in a policy activation year in 2024" - the new NISA has lowered investment tax rates; Require listed companies to conduct market value management, reduce financial reporting pressure, and extend trading hours from November.
At the same time, the depreciation of the Japanese yen has increased the attractiveness of exports, resulting in record high profits for businesses in the second and third quarters. In addition, the "stock god" Warren Buffett's increased bets have greatly boosted market sentiment.