Japan's Nikkei 225 index has reached a historic high recorded for more than 33 years. This index, which includes shares of Japan's largest companies, closed at the level of March 1990. This rise reflects investors' optimism about economic recovery after the country's long struggle with deflation. The Nikkei 225 index, consisting of shares of leading Japanese companies, rose 1.2% and closed at 33,763.18 in Tokyo. This growth is due to the recovery of shares of companies in the technology sector and a decrease in treasury bond yields. The benchmark Topix index, which is also widely used in investments, rose 0.8%. The Nikkei 225 and Topix indices showed growth of more than 25% last year, which was the best result in a decade. This growth was one of the most outstanding in the world in 2023 and was triggered by the actions of the authorities to stimulate an increase in the value of companies' shares. After decades of deflation, Japan is finally experiencing moderate price growth. The yen, which has historically remained weak despite the recent upturn, also supported exporters. In addition, investors are encouraged by Warren Buffett's investments in Japan's largest trading companies, which contributed to the growth of stocks in the world's third largest economy. Although inflation in Japan has not reached the levels seen in other Asian countries, and there are signs of a slowdown, it is still a radical change from previous years, when prices were constantly falling and negatively impacted corporate profits. It also prompted the Bank of Japan to fight deflation by lowering interest rates to below zero and buying up assets in the market to stimulate demand. Several companies, such as DeNA Co. and Nintendo Co., also had an impact on the growth of the Nikkei 225 index. For example, DeNA Co. announced the start of the stock listing process for its subsidiary Go Inc., which pushed the company's shares up. Shares of Nintendo Co. also strengthened, as Bernstein & Co. expressed optimism about the success of the Japanese game maker, especially in connection with the expected release of a new game console later this year.
