Some of the world’s most famed investors and the biggest Wall Street banks are voicing a near consensus that Japan’s stock market is the place to be as its larger peers — the U.S. and China — grapple with rising economic headwinds.
Man GLG, JPMorgan Asset Management and Morgan Stanley are among those who see more upside after the broad Topix index reached its highest level since 1990 this week. Equities are shooting above levels dubbed as the "iron coffin lid” as the return of inflation, improving shareholder returns and an endorsement by Warren Buffett all combine to burnish the appeal of the world’s third-largest stock market.
"Japan is my favorite global stock market at this point. It’s getting everything it’s wished for,” said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at Cresset Capital Management, a Chicago-based investment advisory firm that manages about $60 billion. "We are about 50% overweight Japanese stocks in our developed-market strategy.”