Key facts
- Japanese households' equity holdings have surpassed insurance and pension assets for the first time.
- Total financial assets held by Japanese households reached a record 2,519 trillion yen ($16 trillion) by the end of June.
- Household equity holdings increased 47.0% to 486 trillion yen by the end of June.
- Investment trusts held by households surged 36.8% to 193 trillion yen by the end of June.
- The Bank of Japan raised its key policy rate to 1.0% in June.
Japanese households' equity holdings have surpassed their insurance and pension assets for the first time on record, according to revised Bank of Japan figures released Thursday. This shift reflects a rally in the stock market and increased retail investor participation, partly driven by tax-incentivized savings programs.
Financial assets held by households in Japan rose to a record 2,519 trillion yen ($16 trillion) at the end of June, an increase of 11.0 percent from a year earlier, the Bank of Japan said. By asset type, households held 486 trillion yen in equities, up 47.0 percent, while investment trusts surged 36.8 percent to 193 trillion yen. Holdings of debt securities increased 15.5 percent to 38 trillion yen.
The Bank of Japan raised its key policy rate from 0.75 percent to 1.0 percent in June, its first increase this year, and is expected to lift it further as it normalizes monetary policy amid persistent inflation. Household liabilities rose 4.1 percent to a record 416 trillion yen, reflecting increased housing loans and credit card use. Cash and deposits edged up 0.5 percent to 1,132 trillion yen, but their share of household assets declined.
Separately, financial assets held by Japanese households as of the end of September grew 4.9% from a year earlier to ¥2.286 quadrillion ($14.7 trillion), hitting a record high for two quarters in a row. Shares held by households soared 19.3% to ¥317 trillion, and investment trust funds jumped 21.1% to ¥153 trillion, supported by the Nippon Individual Savings Account tax exemption program. Insurance policies saw a rise of 2.0% to ¥416 trillion.