Japanese investors sold overseas equities for second straight month in November

(Reuters) – Japanese investors sold overseas stocks for a second consecutive month in November as they sought to capitalize on robust gains in global equities, particularly as U.S. stocks reached record highs.

According to data from Japan’s Ministry of Finance, these investors net sold 1.22 trillion yen ($8.12 billion) worth of overseas stocks last month, following about 2.37 trillion yen worth of net withdrawals in the prior month.

Japanese trust accounts divested foreign stocks worth a net 1.33 trillion yen, their third monthly net sales in a row. Investment trust management companies, meanwhile, purchased 550.5 billion yen worth of shares, the highest in three months.

Barclays (LON:BARC) said trust accounts experienced significant net sales, likely prompted by the need to rebalance portfolios following a strong U.S. equity performance, while investment trusts’ heavy purchases were likely influenced by renewed interest in new NISA-linked investment flows.

NISA, or the Nippon Individual Savings Account, is a Japanese government tax-free stock investment programme for individuals, which aims to turn the trillions of yen held in cash by households into investments in stock markets.

According to data from the Bank of Japan, Japanese investors had sold a net 1.33 trillion yen worth of U.S. equities the year up to October.

They also ditched a net 412 billion yen and 162.2 billion yen worth of European and British stocks in the same period.

Meanwhile, local investors sold a net 432.8 billion yen worth of debt securities in November, extending net sales into a second successive month, Ministry of Finance data showed.

($1 = 150.3300 yen)