Active Investing in Japan

Watch the yen-U.S. dollar: we could see 119 for the first time since stocks sold-off globally back in late February. Yen weakness bodes well for Japanese exporters and Japanese stocks in general, despite the fact import costs rise. That is mostly overlooked, at least on the surface level. The yen carry trade remains too good a deal for the fast money to let slip away. Anyway, stocks were bought pretty much across the board today, as 31 of 33 TOPIX sectors traded higher and advancers outnumbered decliners 1,443 x 206. The Nikkei 225 gained 1.74% to 17,544.09, recovering 17,500 for the first time in seven trading days. TOPIX gained 1.54% to 1,730.52.

A quick post here to inform readers of Daihatsu’s (JP: 7262) 1st place rank in Japanese mini-car sales for the fiscal year just ended last month. This is the first time it has led in its 100-year history, according to Reuters Japan. Also, it is the first time in 34 years Suzuki (JP: 7269) has not held the top spot. More details to come, as we are still busy with preparations for the website and company. But, we do want to reiterate again, our preference of Daihatsu over other autos as an investment. Refer to two earlier posts for more details here and here.

I don’t have time to go into details at the moment, but I suggest taking a look at Sega Sammy (SGAMY.PK) (JP:6460). It has a P/E ratio right around 10x, P/B is less than 2, dividend yield is about 3%, and foreign investment funds seem to be eyeing and buying (ex. Capital Research Mgmt. filed an increase in ownership to 10.3%, from 8.1% in late March).
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