Japan stocks have finally recovered to top the all-time high set at the peak of the 1980s bubble era, at least according to one measure of the country’s equities.
The Nikkei 500, an index that includes 275 more companies than the benchmark 225-issue Nikkei average, rose to a record Monday, topping the closing high in December 1989. It comes even as the Nikkei 225 continues to languish far below the 38,915.87 record close also reached that year, despite more than seven years of unprecedented monetary easing. The blue-chip gauge is down 0.6 percent so far this year, while the Nikkei 500 has added 7.7 percent.
Many of the gains in the broader 500 index come from companies which aren’t included in the Nikkei 225. Nintendo Co., up 37 percent this year on the back of an unprecedented pandemic-induced surge in demand for its Switch console, has contributed the majority of the index’s returns this year.
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