Could it really be true, could Japan be back? After two "lost decades" the stimulus programme of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, dubbed "Abenomics", nearly a year old, seems to be doing the trick, at least as far as investors are concerned.
The Nikkei 225, so often the world's stockmarket poor relation, is up by a staggering 46 per cent since Mr Abe was elected. The UK's FTSE 250, by comparison, is up 26 per cent over the same period.
However, it is a journey that has hit some bumps along the way. This is best demonstrated by a 20 per cent market fall in late May after Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke announced the US central bank's intention to end its quantitative-easing programme, sending global markets haywire. Since the sell-off bottomed on 13 June, the Japanese index has recovered by 8 per cent, with some taking the view that earnings can continue to grow.
The average Japanese equity fund is up 33 per cent since mid-December, while the Legg Mason Japan Equity fund has proved the best performer over the period with a staggering 80 per cent return for investors, followed by the Invesco Perpetual Smaller Companies fund which rose 65 per cent.
Source: NewsOnJapan
