Jonathan Garner: Japan’s Equities Continue to Rally

Jonathan Garner: Japan’s Equities Continue to Rally

While Japan's equities have continued to rally, a roster of sector leading companies and a weak Yen could signal this bullish story is only just beginning.


----- Transcript -----

Welcome to Thoughts on the Market. I'm Jonathan Garner, Chief Asia and Emerging Market Equity Strategist at Morgan Stanley. Along with my colleagues bringing you a variety of perspectives, I'll be sharing why Japan Equities could be a key part of the bullish story in Asia this year. It's Thursday, May the 25th at 10 a.m. in New York.


Japan equities have rallied substantially during the current earnings season and we think further gains are increasingly likely. The theme of return on equity improvement, driven by productive CapEx and better balance sheet management, is clearly finding traction with a wide group of international investors. We first introduced this theme in our 2018 Blue Paper on Japan, where we described a journey from laggard to leader, which we felt was starting to take place due to a confluence of structural reforms such as the Corporate Governance Code and Institutional Investor Stewardship Code, as well as changes in company board composition and outside activist investor pressure.


Japan has a formidable roster of world class firms, which we have identified as productivity and innovation leaders in areas such as semiconductor equipment, optical, healthcare, medtech, robotics and traditional heavy industrial automotive, agricultural and commodities trading, specialty chemicals. As well as more recent additions in Internet and E-commerce, many of which sell products far beyond Japan's borders.


For the market overall, listed equities ROE has more than doubled in the last ten years, and it's now set to approach our medium term target of 11 to 12% by 2025. Company buybacks are analyzing at a record pace and total shareholder return, that is the sum of dividends and buybacks, is running at 3.6% of market capitalization.


Yet Japan equities are still trading on only around 13 times forward price to earnings. And Japanese firms have a low cost of capital, given the country's status as a high income sovereign, with membership of the G7, as highlighted by Premier Kishida hosting its recent summit in his home town of Hiroshima.


An additional near-term catalyst for Japan equities is that the yen is tracking significantly weaker year to date at around 135 to the U.S. dollar than company modeling, which was for around 125. Given the export earnings skew of the market, this is a positive.


All in all, Japan equities are set, we think, to more than hold their own versus global peers and be a key part of a bullish story in Asian equities this year.


Thanks for listening. If you enjoyed the show, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts and recommend Thoughts on the Market to a friend or colleague today.

Avsnitt(1512)

Andrew Sheets: A New Chapter for the United Kingdom

Andrew Sheets: A New Chapter for the United Kingdom

On today's episode, For three and a half years, Brexit has been a source of uncertainty for the United Kingdom and its markets. Now, with some business uncertainty reduced, a new narrative may be emerging.

3 Jan 20203min

Mike Wilson: 2020 and the Return to Reflation

Mike Wilson: 2020 and the Return to Reflation

On today's episode, why escalating labor costs, deglobalization and central bank policies may mean positioning portfolios toward stocks that benefit from rising inflation.

23 Dec 20194min

Andrew Sheets: 3 Lessons from 2019… for 2020

Andrew Sheets: 3 Lessons from 2019… for 2020

On today's episode, What important factors from 2019 could give investors context on the investing climate ahead? Consider valuations, policy and inflation.

20 Dec 20193min

Michael Zezas: Markets Mull the “Phase One” Deal

Michael Zezas: Markets Mull the “Phase One” Deal

On today's episode, What will the U.S-China “Phase One” trade deal mean for the global economy, corporate confidence and markets? Head of U.S. Public Policy Michael Zezas weighs in.

18 Dec 20192min

Mike Wilson: A Trifecta of Positive Catalysts

Mike Wilson: A Trifecta of Positive Catalysts

On today's episode, A dovish Fed, progress on trade and a path toward a potentially orderly Brexit are driving global equities higher but how much of the global recovery is already priced?

16 Dec 20193min

Andrew Sheets: 2020 Playbook: Analyzing the Bull Case

Andrew Sheets: 2020 Playbook: Analyzing the Bull Case

In this special two part bull/bear series, Chief Cross-Asset Strategist Andrew Sheets shares insight on the catalysts that could drive strong market returns in 2020.

13 Dec 20192min

Special Episode: Manufacturing Data Sends an Upbeat Signal

Special Episode: Manufacturing Data Sends an Upbeat Signal

On this episode with special guest Chetan Ahya, the firm’s Chief Global Economist, Trade tensions have put a damper on global manufacturing, but is the tide poised to turn after the first broad-based sentiment uptick in seven months?

12 Dec 20192min

Michael Zezas: U.S.-China Trade: What Happens in 2020?

Michael Zezas: U.S.-China Trade: What Happens in 2020?

On today's episode, Although some reports have suggested progress on a phase one deal, markets are still seeking a clear signal forward on trade—and that means tackling the more difficult phase two deal.

11 Dec 20192min

Populärt inom Business & ekonomi

badfluence
framgangspodden
varvet
rss-svart-marknad
rss-borsens-finest
uppgang-och-fall
rss-jossan-nina
affarsvarlden
bathina-en-podcast
lastbilspodden
fill-or-kill
borsmorgon
rss-inga-dumma-fragor-om-pengar
24fragor
avanzapodden
rss-kort-lang-analyspodden-fran-di
kapitalet-en-podd-om-ekonomi
rss-dagen-med-di
rss-en-rik-historia
tabberaset