encouraging people to trade stocks, but holding nothing? japan's top candidate in prime ministerial election criticized for betrayal of the public
2024-09-25
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on september 27, the liberal democratic party of japan will hold a presidential election to select the successor to party leader fumio kishida. since the liberal democratic party is the ruling party, the winner of this election will also become the next prime minister of japan.
as five of the six factions within the ldp have announced their dissolution, this election has become a "free competition" without the influence of traditional factions. currently, there are still nine candidates competing fiercely. according to comprehensive polls, shigeru ishiba, shinjiro koizumi and sanae takaichi are the most likely to be elected.
by reviewing the property declarations of members of the japanese house of representatives, it can be found that these three poll leaders have similarities: shinjiro koizumi and sanae takaichi do not hold any stock assets of japanese companies, and shigeru ishiba's office said that all the stocks under his name were passively inherited, not actively bought. while the japanese government continues to encourage people to enter the market to buy stocks, the three most likely candidates to be elected as the next prime minister do not actively hold stock assets, which has also been criticized by the outside world as "hypocrisy."
▲japanese residents look at stock market trends
three poll leaders do not actively hold stocks
provoking controversy
by law, japanese lawmakers must report personal property (except bank deposits), and the three candidates last declared their assets in october 2021. however, according to japanese law, if the holdings of securities stocks increase, they need to be reported annually.
the offices of shinjiro koizumi and sanae takaichi have confirmed that their assets have not changed since their last declaration, and they still do not hold any stocks or investment trust products. shinjiro koizumi does not own any real estate, while sanae takaichi owns a property worth about 10 million yen (about 500,000 yuan).
▲ shinjiro koizumi
shigeru ishiba, who once served as defense minister, agriculture, forestry and fisheries minister, and ldp secretary-general, owns shares in seven companies, including tokyo electric power, kawasaki heavy industries, and mitsubishi heavy industries, with a total value of 27.2 million yen (about 1.36 million yuan). however, ishiba's office said that he inherited these shares passively, not actively bought them. among the other six candidates, takayuki kobayashi and yoko kamikawa do not hold any shares either.
“when the japanese government called on people to shift from saving to investing in the stock market, they themselves showed no interest in investing and did nothing substantial, which was a betrayal to the public,” said mitsushige akino, president of ichiyoshi asset management.
japanese government encourages people to invest in stocks
vigorously promote stimulus policies
according to statistics from the bank of japan, as of the end of 2023, japanese residents' cash savings exceeded 100 trillion yen (about 50 trillion yuan). due to the long-term deflation of ultra-low interest rates, cash accounts for 52.6% of japanese household financial assets, which is much higher than other countries. data from the bank of japan show that as of march 2023, cash assets held by american households accounted for 12.6%, and in the eurozone it was 35.5%.
how to transform "dormant" savings into investment behavior to stimulate economic growth has been a headache for the japanese government for many years, and the japanese government has made many efforts to this end. as early as 2014, the japanese government started to establish the small investment tax exemption system (nisa) to exempt residents' stock investment accounts from tax. in 2024, the tax exemption limit for nisa accounts will be further increased, with an additional tax exemption limit of 3.6 million yen (about 180,000 yuan) each year, and the cumulative tax exemption limit will not exceed 18 million yen (about 900,000 yuan).
▲tokyo stock exchange, japan, according to xinhua news agency
in addition, the japanese government has vigorously promoted the benefits of investing in the japanese stock market at home and abroad, held activities such as "japan investment week", and provided various subsidies to foreign investors and young people in japan to encourage them to "invest in stocks". the tokyo stock exchange has also carried out drastic reforms, making stricter regulations on information disclosure and market value management of listed companies, so that ordinary investors can better understand the asset quality of listed companies.
thanks to the efforts of the japanese government over the years, the enthusiasm of japanese people to invest in the stock market has been gradually stimulated in 2024. as of march this year, the total value of japanese household stock assets increased by 29.2% year-on-year, while cash savings increased by only 1%. invesco asset management's global market strategist tomoo kinoshita estimated that in the japanese stock market, which hit a new high at the beginning of this year, one in 10 japanese households received capital gains of more than 6 million yen (about 300,000 yuan).
japanese stocks retreat after hitting a high last month
foreign investors may have already "fled"
the nikkei 225 index has been on a tear this year, breaking through record highs one after another. however, the recent volatility shows that the japanese stock market is by no means a safe asset.
on march 4 this year, the nikkei stock index broke through the 40,000-point mark, surpassing the high point during the bubble period 34 years ago and setting a new record. on july 9, the japanese stock market broke through the 41,000-point mark again and continued to set new historical highs. however, in early august, the nikkei stock index suffered a world-renowned plunge. on august 5, the "black monday", the nikkei index fell by more than 12%, setting a new low this year. the "circuit breaker mechanism" was triggered on the same day for the topix index futures and the nikkei stock index futures.
▲on march 4, the nikkei stock index broke through 40,000 points
a report released by jpmorgan chase on august 5 estimated that in the absence of war and epidemic, the japanese stock market has suffered a rare large-scale sell-off, and investors who entered the market to chase highs since april this year have sold nearly 90% of their positions. the report also warned that if this sell-off continues, the nikkei index may fall to 27,000 points. kelvin tai, chief investment officer of ubs group global wealth management, also said on the same day that entering the japanese stock market to buy stocks now is like catching "a falling knife."
red star news reporter zheng zhi
editor: guo yu, editor-in-chief: deng feiguang
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