Bloomberg Surveillance · Thursday, August 6, 2026
Despite the weakening yen, Japanese equities have been the best market performers since last spring, with Japan reporting the largest balance of payment surplus among developed nations. This economic strength, coupled with outperforming Japanese bank stocks, suggests the country is not in a recession or a debt crisis. The strong equity performance might also be a factor in the yen's weakness, potentially leading to excess selling by foreign investors.
“I mean, here's the fact about Japan. Right since last spring, so that's when you know, the yen started to weaken again, Japanese equity has been the best performer in the market, right, and we've seen the biggest balance of payment surplus in Japan among the developed nations.”
“So I think economically or in the equity market, things are great. Japanese bank stocks have performed US bank stocks, so I think, you know, we're not in a recession, we're not in a dead crisis.”
“The weekend hurts, but I think so. I think from the public, maybe the pressure is not as strong as you know people think outside of Japan.”