With 2025 approaching, looking back at 2024, Japanese stocks experienced considerable volatility. At the beginning of the year, Japanese stocks briefly led the Global market, breaking a record that had been untouched for 34 years; subsequently, Japanese stocks continued to rise amidst fluctuations, with the Nikkei 225 Index surpassing the 42,000 mark in early July, setting a new historical high.

However, this was followed by a significant decline in Japanese stocks. In the context of the unexpected interest rate hike during the Bank of Japan's July meeting, the yen appreciated sharply, and carry trades were hampered, leading to a stock market crash in early August, thrusting market sentiment into panic. On August 5th (Black Monday), the Nikkei 225 Index plummeted over 12%, dipping below the 32,000 level, which is a decline of over 0.01 million points from its previous high.

Thereafter, the Bank of Japan adopted a cautious approach to monetary policy. On August 6th, the Bank of Japan's deputy governor stated that interest rates would not be raised during times of market instability, gradually stabilizing market sentiment, and Japanese stocks started to rebound; as of now, the Nikkei 225 Index hovers around 40,000 points.

Overall, this year's trend in Japanese stocks is still upward. $Nikkei 225 Index (.NKY.US)$ Up nearly 18% so far this year. $TOPIX (.TOPIX.JP)$ Up nearly 16%. Therefore, there are still significant profit effects in Japanese stocks this year, among which the most notable performance in the Japanese market is a company with a long history of 139 years, benefiting from the global frenzy for AI, producing cables for Datacenter. $Fujikura (5803.JP)$ The stock price has soared nearly 500% so far this year.

Similarly benefiting from AI, the demand for testing equipment in Semiconductors has significantly increased, with Japanese major manufacturers of semiconductor testing equipment. $Advantest (6857.JP)$The stock price has nearly doubled this year.

Industrial Machinery stocks have performed well in the Japanese market this year, among which is one of Japan's three major heavy industry giants.$IHI (7013.JP)$The stock price has surged this year, with a cumulative increase of nearly 200%; while the other two companies $Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (7011.JP)$ 、 $Kawasaki Heavy Industries (7012.JP)$ have risen by 176% and 104% respectively. In addition, Japan's manufacturing giant $Hitachi (6501.JP)$ The performance is also strong, with an increase approaching doubling for the year.

Confidence in Japan's large manufacturing sector is strengthening. According to the quarterly Tankan report recently released by the Bank of Japan, the short-term economic outlook index for large manufacturers in Japan rose to 14 in December, surpassing the market expectation of 13. This data indicates that despite many challenges facing the Global economy, confidence in Japan's manufacturing sector continues to rise.

Analysts indicate that Japanese companies are optimistic about future business prospects, primarily benefiting from the recovery of domestic demand and an increase in export orders. This boost in confidence may have a positive impact on Japan's overall economic recovery. However, the strong US dollar and fluctuations in international raw material prices may still put pressure on Japan's manufacturing industry, which requires attention.

In addition, Japan's offline Consumer scenarios are gradually recovering, and Japanese Consumer stocks are performing well. Among them, the Japanese sports giant with a 75-year history.$ASICS (7936.JP)$ The stock price soared 174% this year, the parent company of Hello Kitty.$Sanrio (8136.JP)$ Then it surged by 126%.

Among the leading stocks in Japan, several financial stocks performed outstandingly, including,$Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (8316.JP)$、$Tokio Marine Holdings (8766.JP)$、$Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (8306.JP)$The increases for the year have been 64%, 57%, and 53%, respectively.

In addition, the Japanese human resources giant $Recruit Holdings (6098.JP)$ has risen more than 94% year-to-date, $SoftBank Group (9984.JP)$ and the parent company of Uniqlo $Fast Retailing (9983.JP)$ both increased by about 50%, significantly outperforming the Nikkei/Yen.

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编辑/jayden