TOKYO, July 14: Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. (MUFG) became Japan’s most valuable publicly traded company, marking the first time in about 39 years that a financial institution has claimed the top spot.
Toyota Motor Corp. had led Japan’s market capitalisation rankings for more than 22 years before relinquishing the top spot in recent weeks.
MUFG shares climbed around three per cent from Friday’s close to a record intraday high of 3,564 yen (around US$22), supported by expectations of robust earnings for the business year ending March 2027.
The stock finished at 3,541 yen (around US$21), lifting the group’s market value above 42 trillion yen (about US$258.7 billion).
Financial stocks have rallied, driven by the prospect that higher lending rates will boost their earnings following the Bank of Japan’s interest rate hikes.
The central bank raised its policy rate to 1.0 per cent from 0.75 per cent in June, the highest level in 31 years.
SoftBank Group Corp. overtook Toyota on June 1 on optimism surrounding artificial intelligence, before chipmaker Kioxia Holdings Corp. took the lead, with its market value at one point nearing 60 trillion yen (about US$370.9 billion).
At Monday’s close, Toyota ranked second with a market capitalisation of nearly 41 trillion yen (about US$253.5 billion), while SoftBank Group and Kioxia were each valued at more than 36 trillion yen (about US$222.6 billion).
The last time a financial institution led Japan’s market capitalisation rankings was in June 1987, when the former Sumitomo Bank held the position.
MUFG forecasts group net profit of 2.7 trillion yen (about US$16.6 billion) for the current business year, up 11.2 per cent from a year earlier.
— BERNAMA-XINHUA