Foreign ownership of Japanese shares marks record fall in FY 2008+

TOKYO, June 19 Kyodo -
Nonresident investors owned 23.6 percent of shares traded on stock exchanges in
Japan in fiscal 2008, down 4.0 percentage points from the previous year for the
largest fall on record, the Tokyo Stock Exchange said Friday.

Foreign ownership of domestic shares declined for the second consecutive year
as nonresident investors stepped up the withdrawal of funds from bourses in
Japan in the face of its economic slowdown, the TSE said.
Shares sold by nonresident investors were partially taken over by individuals
in light of the cumulative number of them topping 40 million for the first
time.
The TSE analyzed the ownerships of companies listed on the Tokyo bourse as well
as the Osaka, Nagoya, Fukuoka and Sapporo stock markets in fiscal 2008 ended in
March. It began compiling data in fiscal 1970.
While foreign ownership of shares fell in all 33 sectors, nonresident investors
sold more shares than they bought by 4.22 trillion yen, the TSE said.
Individuals owned 20.1 percent of shares, up 1.9 percentage points for the
second straight yearly rise, and scored a buying excess of 729.2 billion yen.
The cumulative number of individuals who owned shares in listed companies
totaled 42.23 million, up 2.27 million and setting an all-time high for the
13th year in a row.
The ownership of shares by business corporations grew 1.1 percentage points to
22.4 percent as they actively conducted share buybacks to support their stock
prices.
==Kyodo