ETFs that follow the JPX-Nikkei Index 400, a government-backed stock gauge started in 2014 that selects companies based on return on equity and operating profit, will also be eligible for the BOJ investment program. The JPX-Nikkei 400 Index was launched in January 2014 as a means of revitalizing the Japanese equity market. The JPX-Nikkei 400 Index employs a rigorous screening process based on return on equity, cumulative operating profit and market capitalization to select high-quality, capital-efficient Japanese companies.
U.S. ETF investors can track the benchmark index through the relatively new offerings Deutsche X-trackers Japan JPX-Nikkei 400 Equity ETF (NYSEArca: JPN) and iShares JPX-Nikkei 400 ETF (NYSEArca: JPXN).
The two offerings show similar tilts in their sector allocations. JPN’s top sectors include 20.2% industrials, 18.5% financials, 18.0% consumer discretionary. JPXN’s top areas include 21.1% industrials, 18.0% consumer discretionary and 17.2% financials.
Investors can also track the currency-hedged versions of the JPX-Nikkei 400 ETFs, which try to diminish the negative effects of a weakening yen currency, including the Deutsche X-trackers Japan JPX-Nikkei 400 Hedged Equity ETF (NYSEArca: JPNH) and the iShares Currency Hedged JPX-Nikkei 400 ETF (NYSEArca: HJPX).