Fidelity Japan Share Discussion Threads

[sutherlh] 12/1/2024 11:22

Found old document, fiv was a typo, it should have been fjv. Like the feel of the chart and with the Nikki near 7 year high added a few more. Just down 20% over the years. H

[sutherlh] 11/1/2024 09:44

Is this trust fjv the same as fiv? I bought the latter in my ISA many years and can no longer track it. Thanks for any info. H

[bitgold] 06/1/2024 14:55

Markets at high but the currency is really weak, especially versus GBP. Some commentators predicting hyperinflation in Japan, others a rapid currency strengthening - who to believe? I would have more trust in this if the discount was wider than 10%, so for now my monthly is stopped.

[jonwig] 16/7/2023 09:05

Kepler -



Warren Buffett’s decision to invest heavily in several Japanese companies over the past 12 months has brought up the usual annoying headlines about how great he is, as well as some discussion as to whether stocks listed in the world’s third-largest economy are worth reevaluating.

Is that actually happening? A recent analysis by Copley Fund Research provides some answers by looking at the weightings to Japan in a set of Global Equity Funds.

The first thing to note is that the average fund has been underweight to Japan, compared to the MSCI ACWI, for the entirety of the past decade. However, the spread between the average fund weighting and the index weighting has been tightening over the past five years and is now at close to its tightest level since 2014.

Another point that stands out in the report is the proportion of funds that have exposure to Japan. Looking at the past decade again, the proportion of global equity funds investing in Japan hit its lowest level approximately 12 months ago. Since then it has bounced back sharply, from a low of 84.9% to 87.1%.

However, exposure to Japan is markedly different depending on style. Value funds have an average overweight position. In contrast, income funds and growth investors are both underweight on average.

Top down analyses like this can mean you end up capturing data that isn’t entirely accurate, mainly because classifying funds can be an exercise in trying to square a circle. For example, the British & American Investment Trust (BAF), as readers can likely infer, invests in US and UK companies and is benchmarked against the FTSE All-Share. However, it is part of the AIC’s Global Equity Income Sector.

Nonetheless, Copley’s research, which looks at funds globally, does seem to fit broadly with trends we see in the UK’s investment trust sector.

For instance, every trust in the AIC’s Global Equity Income sector is currently underweight Japan, reflecting the relatively low dividend payouts Japanese companies offer.

In contrast, several trusts in the AIC’s Global sector are overweight to Japan. For instance, Bankers (BNKR) upped its weighting from 7.4% at the end of October last year, to 13.4% at the end of May. That coincides with a period where the managers have tilted the portfolio more towards value, after a decade-long period focused on growth.

AVI Global (AGT) is probably the most notable trust in the sector when it comes to Japan, with the trust having a 19% weighting to the country. However, the trust managers are Japan specialists and take a differentiated, value-driven approach to markets. For example, a key part of the strategy is to invest in what the managers believe are undervalued investment trusts trading at a discount, and to capture the enhanced returns that a tightening of the discount produces.

In some ways, the tilt towards Japan in value funds also mirrors some of the success we’ve seen in country specialist trusts. For instance, AVI Japan Opportunity (AJOT), which is managed by the same company as AGT, also takes a value-driven approach to Japanese Smaller Companies and has enjoyed a strong 12 months compared to its benchmark.

Similarly, CC Japan Income & Growth (CCJI) has had a very strong 12 months. The trust managers look to invest in companies that can pay increasing, sustainable dividends, and have been able to benefit from some of the corporate reforms we’ve seen in Japan over the past decade.

For investors considering Japan, CCJI arguably offers a more attractive approach today. As we noted earlier this year, valuations in Japan do look attractive and corporate reforms, as well as modest inflation levels, continue to act as a tailwind for investors. However, stylistic calls remain hard to make and the balance that CCJI offers – valuation-conscious but not pure value plays – may be the better choice to make today.

[mozy123] 15/6/2023 09:16

Hope this moves up abit more - Japan markets at highs.

[this_is_me] 15/6/2023 07:15

From memory this is the third time NAV has reached £2. Hopefully this time it will not drop back again.

[jonwig] 31/5/2023 07:22

Monthly summary, April -

[jonwig] 26/5/2023 08:16

MoneyWeek -

[jonwig] 22/5/2023 15:37

Lots on Japan equities in FT last week. Buffett involved, many fund managers positive.

[this_is_me] 22/5/2023 07:27

NAV hits £2.

[jonwig] 09/5/2023 19:05

Citywire -

Another overlooked market we have invested in recently is Japan, where a surge in shareholder activism is reinvigorating the region’s dated corporate culture. In particular, the country’s cash-rich but low-yielding businesses are proving fertile ground for change. Since 2019, there has been a steady increase in activist events, share buybacks and takeovers in an effort to improve profits for investors.

Despite the resultant increase in shareholder returns across the board, Japanese companies – particularly at the smaller end of the spectrum – continue to trade on much lower multiples than international peers

[jonwig] 20/4/2023 08:03

FT:

Japan’s stock market could be set for the best returns in a generation, say analysts bullish about the prospect of an end to decades of deflation and growing levels of shareholder activism — but their optimism has yet to persuade many overseas investors to part with their cash.

[jonwig] 18/4/2023 07:20

Economist:

[jonwig] 14/4/2023 07:00

Buffett investing in Japan:

[this_is_me] 08/3/2023 07:10

NAV has reached £2.

[jonwig] 16/2/2023 11:59

"... we think Japan could do well, and given how poor sentiment has been towards the country, this could be a powerful driver behind relative returns."

[jonwig] 15/2/2023 13:37

Hardman research (sponsored):

[jonwig] 04/2/2023 09:35

Why it’s finally time to take a look at Japan
By Simon Edelsten (a Japan fund manager)
Good companies and a rising yen should tempt investors

[this_is_me] 25/1/2023 07:37

NAV rising, now 190p

[jonwig] 15/1/2023 07:33

Dated 13/01:

[jonwig] 12/1/2023 18:42

From an FT newsletter ("Unhedged") this morning:

Pelham Smithers of Pelham Smithers Associates, our go-to Japan watcher, thinks this is all heralding a grand shift in inflation psychology. As he pointed out to us yesterday, the headline inflation rate probably understates how profoundly wage-price dynamics are changing:

Two things have happened over the last year. The first is that inflation in Japan has been quite a big media story. It would be very difficult to watch the day-to-day news without getting caught up in the inflation story.

The second thing is that high-street [retail] inflation has been essentially running at double the national rate. [In contrast to, for example, rent inflation near zero] if you’re someone shopping on the high street, you’ve seen something around 6 to 7 per cent inflation. So you’ve been feeling like prices have been rising . ;. . you don’t think, “Oh, my rent hasn’t gone up” as an important factor. You’re just looking at the price of flour and eggs and thinking, “Oh, God” …

Because major parts of Japanese household spending haven’t gone up, the headline rate isn’t as high. But the psychology the Japanese have had about inflation is probably worse than the peak in the US or the UK, because they haven’t experienced it for 30 or 40 years.

An inflation regime change would likely remake the country’s sluggish stock market: nominal profits, at long last, could expand. That would make the appeal of investing in Japan much clearer for global investors.

[jonwig] 09/1/2023 09:49

Previous threads are inactive and lack header information.

[jonwig] 09/1/2023 09:49

Some recent analyst views have picked Japan as the market for 2023 "at last" after 30 years of underperformance. The BoJ's attempts to inject a bit of normalised inflation might just work, too.


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