Japanese fund managers as a group turned roaringly bullish on their stock market this month, according to a Merrill Lynch-Gallup poll of 42 Japanese institutions. And data show Japanese managers prefer their stock market to that of other major countries or regions.
In a survey taken April 1-2, the balance of bulls minus bears on a three-month view of the Japanese equity market jumped to 73.8%. In March, the balance was 49%, and in February, 40.4%. When asked to give a 12-month view, the balance of bulls minus bears was 57.2%.