iShares MSCI Japan ETF

EWJ tracks a market-cap-weighted index which covers roughly 85% of the investable universe of securities traded in Japan.

WisdomTree Japan Hedged Equity Fund

iShares Currency Hedged MSCI Japan ETF

By Christopher Gannatti, CFA Global Head of Research Key Takeaways Japan's equity market reached a 35-year record high in the first quarter of 2024, driven by the weakness of the yen against the U.S. dollar.

How to Experience a 35-Year Record High in Japan

JPMorgan BetaBuilders Japan ETF

Xtrackers MSCI Japan Hedged Equity ETF

WisdomTree Japan SmallCap Dividend Fund

WisdomTree Japan Hedged SmallCap Equity Fund

iShares MSCI Japan Value ETF

First Trust Japan AlphaDEX Fund

Franklin FTSE Japan Hedged ETF

Franklin FTSE Japan ETF

Goldman Sachs ActiveBeta Japan Equity ETF

iShares JPX-Nikkei 400 ETF

iShares MSCI Japan Small-Cap ETF

March activity data was a mixed bag in Japan. Weak manufacturing weighed on growth in the first quarter of the year.

Japanese Industrial Production Strengthens As Retail Sales Disappoint

Inflation slowed down in March but underlying inflationary pressures are still alive. The BoJ's pause at its next week's meeting is widely expected but markets will pay more attention to the BoJ's quarterly outlook report.

Cooler Inflation Ahead Of The Bank of Japan Meeting

Japan's equity benchmark, the Nikkei 225 Index, has been on a tear in 2024, eclipsing its previous high set back in 1989. As of early April, the index is hovering near 40,000. Solid economic growth, a revamp in the country's tax-free stock investment program and corporate governance reform have helped propel Japanese equities to record highs.

Can Japan's Stock Market Continue Its Record-Setting Run?

Invesco Currencyshares Japanese Yen Trust

ProShares Ultra Yen

ProShares UltraShort Yen

The Bank of Japan is set to normalise monetary policy when certain conditions are met, namely inflation, positive real cash earnings, and a recovery in domestic demand growth. We expect the window for normalisation to open from July for about a year before inflation begins to fall below 2%.

The Bank of Japan's New Path Ahead

iShares Core U.S. Aggregate Bond ETF

Pacer US Cash Cows 100 ETF

iShares Core MSCI EAFE ETF

Vanguard S&P 500 ETF

Overall, ETFs pulled in $20.6 billion in capital last month, taking year-to-date inflows to $196.4 billion.

5 ETFs That Gained Investors' Attention Last Week

Goldman Sachs Physical Gold ETF

GraniteShares Gold Shares

Invesco DB Precious Metals Fund

SPDR Gold Trust

Credit Suisse X-Links Gold Shares Covered Call ETN

SPDR Gold MiniShares Trust

Aberdeen Standard Precious Metals Basket Trust

iShares Gold Trust

iShares Gold Strategy ETF

iShares Gold Trust Micro

FT Cboe Vest Gold Target Income ETF

VanEck Merk Gold Trust

Sprott Physical Gold Trust

Sprott ESG Gold ETF

Aberdeen Standard Gold ETF Trust

The Bank of Japan's historic move to end the country's negative interest rate policy after nearly two decades triggered a jolt upward to new all-time highs for gold against the yen. The BoJ announced it will now hold short-term rates at a still-accommodative 0% to 0.1% and is getting rid of its yield curve control program and ETF purchases.

The End Of Japan's Negative Interest Rates: What It Means For Gold

ARK 21Shares Bitcoin ETF

Bitwise Bitcoin ETP Trust

ProShares Bitcoin Strategy ETF

Fidelity Wise Origin Bitcoin Fund

iShares Bitcoin Trust

ProShares Nasdaq-100 High Income ETF

AdvisorShares Pure US Cannabis ETF

Hartford Multifactor International Small Company ETF

Yieldmax Tsla Option Income Etf

Global X Uranium ETF

Sprott Uranium Miners ETF

Hello! This is MarketWatch reporter Isabel Wang bringing you this week's ETF Wrap. In this week's edition, we look at one of the currency-hedged Japan ETFs, which reached its all-time high on Thursday as the yen weakened after the Bank of Japan's historic interest-rate shift.

Investors push a Japanese ETF to fresh highs, seeking protection from a falling yen

Japan's private sector picked up growth momentum into the end of the first quarter, according to flash PMI data.

Japan Flash PMI Signals Accelerating Growth Momentum And Rising Inflation In March 2024

Kazuo Ueda becomes Governor of the Bank of Japan, continuing the loose monetary policies implemented by his predecessor. The BOJ raises short rates from -0.1% to 0.1%, becoming the last central bank to exit a Negative Interest Rate Policy.

End Of An Era - Bank of Japan Reverses Negative Interest Rate Policy

The Bank of Japan raised interest rates for the first time since 2007 and has eliminated the yield curve control framework. According to the central bank, the virtuous cycle between wages and prices was assessed to have come into sight, bringing the 2% inflation target within a sustainable and stable possibility by the end of fiscal year 2025.

Flash Insights: Bank of Japan - A 'Watchful' Adjustment

The Bank of Japan has now ended decades of unconventional and aggressive monetary easing. Strong wage negotiation results played a crucial role in today's move.

Bank of Japan Pivot Proves Underwhelming For Markets

The Bank of Japan is considering lifting rates for the first time in years, which could have ripple effects on global financial markets. Swaps have priced a 57% chance of a rate hike at the BOJ's upcoming meeting, significantly higher than previous odds.

Bank Of Japan's Rate Decision May Be A Global Game Changer For Markets

Seemingly small changes by policy makers and companies remade Japan's corporate culture, and investors are cashing in.

Japan's Stock Market Is Back, and It Isn't Too Late to Buy

The Nikkei 225 index hit a record closing high this month, marking a roughly five-fold gain from when it hit bottom in 2009.

Japanese Stocks Are Near Records. They Can Keep Rising.

Japanese equity market has caught foreign investor attention as it approaches and beats its 1989 top.

EWJ: Earnings Growth Needs To Catch Up To Momentum

The Japanese stock market has reached all-time highs despite the country being in a recession. The three main sources of fiscal flows in Japan are federal government spending, the current account balance, and bank credit creation.

Japan In Recession But Its Stock Market Makes All Time Highs, This Is How

The Nikkei has hit record highs for the first time in 34 years, despite Japan being in a recession. The sustained weakness of the Yen and the reasonable expectation that it will continue has been a major contributor for its automotive-dominated markets. More forceful corporate governance reforms in Japan are also driving the market's highs, with companies adopting better capital allocation policies as a result.

EWJ: Why Nikkei's New Highs Will Endure

Japan's private sector activity broadly stagnated in February according to flash PMI data, attributed to a combination of slowing services activity growth and an acceleration in manufacturing output contraction. A sharper decline in goods new orders, underpinned by sluggish demand conditions, also largely offset improved demand for services.

Flash PMI Signal Cooling Inflation And Stagnating Private Sector Activity In Japan

Strong prospects for Japan's technology sector, earnings growth, plus structural economic changes could mean further gains ahead for Japanese stocks.

Japan's Market Finally Hit New Record. Why It May Not Be Too Late to Get In.

ProShares Ultra MSCI Japan

Matthews Japan Active ETF

SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust

Japan ETFs have been surging over the past year on several factors and beating the S&P 500.

Japan ETFs Beating S&P 500: More Growth in the Cards?

iShares MSCI All Country Asia ex Japan ETF

SmartETFs Asia Pacific Dividend Builder ETF

iShares Asia 50 ETF

Global X FTSE Southeast Asia ETF

JPMorgan BetaBuilders Developed Asia EX-Japan ETF

iShares Asia/Pacific Dividend ETF

iShares MSCI Emerging Markets Asia ETF

iShares MSCI Philippines ETF

iShares MSCI Pacific ex-Japan ETF

iShares MSCI Australia ETF

iShares MSCI Malaysia ETF

iShares MSCI Singapore ETF

iShares MSCI Taiwan ETF

iShares MSCI South Korea ETF

Franklin FTSE Australia ETF

Franklin FTSE Asia ex Japan ETF

Franklin FTSE South Korea ETF

Franklin FTSE Taiwan ETF

First Trust Asia Pacific ex-Japan AlphaDEX Fund

SPDR S&P Emerging Asia Pacific ETF

Xtrackers International Real Estate ETF

iShares Core MSCI Pacific ETF

Direxion MSCI Daily South Korea Bull 3X Shares

iShares MSCI Thailand ETF

Global X MSCI Vietnam ETF

VanEck Vectors Vietnam ETF

Vanguard FTSE Pacific ETF

While the China macro story of ongoing transition is a headwind to the rest of Asia, there is more to the region's economic health than this.

Asia-Pacific Is Not Just China

Japan's economic growth is projected to decelerate to 0.9% in 2024 and 0.8% in 2025. Government policies have helped the recovery of Japanese stocks and will continue to be a positive factor going forward.

The Rally In Japanese Stocks

VanEck Vectors Africa Index ETF

Central and Eastern Europe Fund

iShares Latin America 40 ETF

iShares MSCI China ETF

Vanguard FTSE Europe ETF

Vanguard Total World Stock ETF

Vanguard Total Stock Market ETF

Vanguard Total International Stock ETF

World stocks that hold US shares are up 1.6% year to date while foreign equities ex-US are down 1.5% in 2024. The Japanese stock market was a strong competitor vis-à-vis US shares last year too.

American Stocks Continue To Lead Global Equities Ex-U.S. In 2024

Xtrackers Harvest CSI 300 China A-Shares ETF

iShares MSCI Hong Kong ETF

iShares Russell 2000 ETF

Invesco India ETF

Invesco QQQ

iShares Silver Trust

United States Natural Gas Fund LP

United States Oil Fund LP

Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund

Real Estate Select Sector SPDR Fund

Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund

The first month of 2024 is already complete, and below is a look at the performance of various asset classes during January using key ETFs that we track closely. The S&P 500 (SPY) finished the month up 1.59% even though the average stock in the index was down 0.84%.

January 2024 Key ETF Performance

News for iShares MSCI Japan ETF ETF (EWJ)