Oct. 6 at 8:42 PM
Why Japan ETFs are rallying sharply after election of party leader Takaichi
By Christine Idzelis
Exchange-traded funds that buy Japanese stocks were rallying Monday, adding to their surge this year, after the election of Sanae Takaichi to lead Japan’s Liberal Democratic Party put her on track to become the country’s next prime minister.
The iShares MSCI Japan ETF was up 2.1% in afternoon trading Monday, while the JPMorgan BetaBuilders Japan ETF climbed 2% and the WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund jumped 3%, according to FactSet data, at last check. Shares of all three U.S.-listed ETFs have surged more than 20% this year, based on Monday afternoon trading levels.
Investors appeared to be cheering the prospect of fiscal stimulus such as more spending and tax relief, while considering the possibility that Takaichi could press the Bank of Japan to put the tightening of monetary policy on hold.
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