A nice article on the recent warmth in the Japanese economy. Nothing new here, just an overview.
Companies are more optimistic, as is evident from a surge in spending on factories and equipment. According to a survey published last week by Japan’s largest business daily, Nihon Keizai Shimbun, such spending will rise 15.2 percent this year, the first double-digit gain since 1991.
There is also increased enthusiasm for Japan among American and other overseas investors. In mid-November, Goldman Sachs held a hedge fund conference in Tokyo; 700 fund managers attended, mostly from the United States and Europe. That was seven times the turnout at the first such conference six years ago, participants said.
Foreigners now account for almost half of all trading on Japanese equity markets, according to the Tokyo Stock Exchange. They have helped spur a rally in the benchmark index, the Nikkei 225, which touched a two-decade low of 7,607.88 in April 2003. On Monday, it reached a five-year high; most of the gains have come since July.
New Optimism About the Japanese Economy After a Bleak Decade – New York Times