Equity Analyst, LightStream Research

Oshadhi Kumarasiri

Equity Analyst

Long-Short Analysis on Japan, Asia and the World

LightStream Research

LightStream conducts quantitatively rigorous and data-driven analysis with a focus on Japan and Asia.

We consistently cover the Tech, Consumer and Industrial sectors, and provide ECM and Events coverage more broadly.

We supplement traditional qualitative insights from company relationships with a robust quantitative foundation that examines as much historical data as is available.
We further refine the accuracy of our insights and calls through the use of alternative data to flesh out current trends, and through a valuation framework that emphasises non-superficial peer group selection and a proper attempt to understand the metrics and changes that have driven security valuations in the past.

Equity Bottom-Up

<p><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/fast-retailing-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:751:1" rel="noopener">Fast Retailing (9983 JP)</a> shares have dropped 13.6% since the BOJ announced changes to the way ETF buying was conducted on 19<sup>th</sup> March 2021 and 23.6% from all time high on 25<sup>th</sup> February 2021.</p><p>Even so, the company is still valued at 26.2x FY+2 EV/EBIT compared to its past three-year average of 20.7x and 41.3x FY+2 PER compared to compared to the three-year average of 34.1x.</p><p>We believe that there is still considerable downside risks to Fast Retailing’s share price and would not rush into this dip at this moment.</p>

Fast Retailing (9983 JP) shares have dropped 13.6% since the BOJ announced changes to the way ETF buying was conducted on 19th March 2021 and 23.6% from all time high on 25th February 2021.Even so, the company is still valued at 26.2x FY+2 EV/EBIT compared to its past three-year average of 20.7x and 41.3x FY+2 PER compared to compared to the three-year average of 34.1x.We believe that there is still considerable downside risks to Fast Retailing’s share price and would not rush into this dip at this moment.

Down 24% From February Peak, But Still Has a Long Way to Go Before The Longs Get Back On Board

Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events, Quiddity Advisors

Travis Lundy

Pan-Asia Catalysts/Events

Quiddity Advisors

Event-Driven

<p>The Nikkei wrote an article last Thursday 18 March 2021 saying the BOJ would change its monetary/quantitative easing policy after having commenced a review in December.</p>
<p>The general idea was a slight curve steepening allowance made "to allow banks to be more profitable" and a change to the way ETF buying was conducted. </p>
<div class="content-highlight">
<p>I published a quick analysis of the <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/changes-in-boj-etf-buying-which-stocks-impacted-and-how" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:49331" rel="noopener">Changes In BOJ ETF Buying - Which Stocks Impacted and How?</a> </p>
</div>
<p><strong>On Friday 19 March, the BOJ met and after the MPC Meeting published...</strong></p>
<ul>
<li>The policy statement for this release, <a href="https://www.boj.or.jp/en/announcements/release_2021/k210319a.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>Further Effective and Sustainable Monetary Easing</em></a>
</li>
<li>a <a href="https://www.boj.or.jp/en/announcements/release_2021/k210319c.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Background</a> to the policy change which discussed the work they did called the <em>Assessment for Further Effective and Sustainable Monetary Easing.</em>
</li>
<li>a nifty <a href="https://www.boj.or.jp/en/announcements/release_2021/k210319b.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">two-pager powerpoint presentation</a> of the Background</li>
<li>and a document called <a href="https://www.boj.or.jp/en/announcements/release_2021/rel210319c.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><em>Establishment of "Principal Terms and Conditions of the Interest Scheme to Promote Lending"</em></a> which also contains the change in wording for the QQE</li>
</ul>
<p>This showed there was some subtlety in the methodology, but it also showed some of the restrictions that the BOJ would place on itself in how it decided when and how much ETF buying to do. </p>
<div class="content-highlight">
<p>I looked at the methodology and numbers and proposed a model in <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/quantifying-the-boj-change-in-etf-policy-assessing-future-etf-buying-methodology" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:49434" rel="noopener">Quantifying the BOJ Change in ETF Policy: Assessing Future ETF Buying Methodology</a> </p>
</div>
<p>The market reaction on some high-Nikkei weight stocks on Thursday afternoon and particularly Friday afternoon was striking. <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/fast-retailing-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:751:1" rel="noopener">Fast Retailing (9983 JP)</a> fell 5.2% in significant volume in the 30 minutes after the announcement.</p>
<p>The balance of ETF buying since the BOJ lifted its buying amount from ¥6 trillion annually to ¥12 trillion in mid-March 2020 in the covid-crash has been as would have been expected. From the 20th of March 2020 through the 19th of March 2021, the BOJ bought ¥5.29trln of regular ETFs of these three indices (and ¥290bn of ETFs to Support Investment in Physical &amp; Human Capital).</p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/insights/boj-etf-buying-composition-clarified" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="insights:38898" rel="noopener">BOJ ETF Buying Composition Clarified</a> in April 2020, I noted the mix was at that time likely to be 90.5% TOPIX, 8.9% Nikkei 225, and 0.6% JPX Nikkei 400. By my calculation, reconstructing the purchases every day based on the rules, the purchase amount over the past year has been 90.4% TOPIX, 9.1% Nikkei 225, and 0.6% JPX Nikkei 400. Given that the BOJ owns most of the ETFs outstanding of these three indices, it would have been difficult to see substantial deviation from that rate.</p>
<div class="content-highlight">
<p>The question is whether the change dramatically impacts stocks going forward.</p>
<p>The easy <em>arithmetic</em> answer is.... no. </p>
</div>
<ul>
<li>Assuming the BOJ were to buy the same amount, TOPIX would see a 10.7% increase in allocations to TOPIX ETFs (from 90.4% to 100.0%)</li>
<li>Nikkei 225 and JPX Nikkei 400 ETFs get nothing. But Nikkei 225 stocks are, by definition, also members of TOPIX, and the vast majority of JPX Nikkei 400 stocks are too. </li>
</ul>
<p>But there is some subtlety here too.</p>
<p>What it really means, however, is that traders and investors cannot count on incremental BOJ demand over the next year to be a material part of remaining Real World Float. This is more a problem of expected support being withdrawn.</p>
<p>Analysis on this below the fold. </p>

The Nikkei wrote an article last Thursday 18 March 2021 saying the BOJ would change its monetary/quantitative easing policy after having commenced a review in December.
The general idea was a slight curve steepening allowance made "to allow banks to be more profitable" and a change to the way ETF buying was conducted. 

I published a quick analysis of the Changes In BOJ ETF Buying - Which Stocks Impacted and How? 

On Friday 19 March, the BOJ met and after the MPC Meeting published...

The policy statement for this release, Further Effective and Sustainable Monetary Easing

a Background to the policy change which discussed the work they did called the Assessment for Further Effective and Sustainable Monetary Easing.

a nifty two-pager powerpoint presentation of the Background
and a document called Establishment of "Principal Terms and Conditions of the Interest Scheme to Promote Lending" which also contains the change in wording for the QQE

This showed there was some subtlety in the methodology, but it also showed some of the restrictions that the BOJ would place on itself in how it decided when and how much ETF buying to do. 

I looked at the methodology and numbers and proposed a model in Quantifying the BOJ Change in ETF Policy: Assessing Future ETF Buying Methodology 

The market reaction on some high-Nikkei weight stocks on Thursday afternoon and particularly Friday afternoon was striking. Fast Retailing (9983 JP) fell 5.2% in significant volume in the 30 minutes after the announcement.
The balance of ETF buying since the BOJ lifted its buying amount from ¥6 trillion annually to ¥12 trillion in mid-March 2020 in the covid-crash has been as would have been expected. From the 20th of March 2020 through the 19th of March 2021, the BOJ bought ¥5.29trln of regular ETFs of these three indices (and ¥290bn of ETFs to Support Investment in Physical &amp; Human Capital).
In BOJ ETF Buying Composition Clarified in April 2020, I noted the mix was at that time likely to be 90.5% TOPIX, 8.9% Nikkei 225, and 0.6% JPX Nikkei 400. By my calculation, reconstructing the purchases every day based on the rules, the purchase amount over the past year has been 90.4% TOPIX, 9.1% Nikkei 225, and 0.6% JPX Nikkei 400. Given that the BOJ owns most of the ETFs outstanding of these three indices, it would have been difficult to see substantial deviation from that rate.

The question is whether the change dramatically impacts stocks going forward.
The easy arithmetic answer is.... no. 


Assuming the BOJ were to buy the same amount, TOPIX would see a 10.7% increase in allocations to TOPIX ETFs (from 90.4% to 100.0%)
Nikkei 225 and JPX Nikkei 400 ETFs get nothing. But Nikkei 225 stocks are, by definition, also members of TOPIX, and the vast majority of JPX Nikkei 400 stocks are too. 

But there is some subtlety here too.
What it really means, however, is that traders and investors cannot count on incremental BOJ demand over the next year to be a material part of remaining Real World Float. This is more a problem of expected support being withdrawn.
Analysis on this below the fold. 

Quantifying BOJ Change in ETF Policy: Affecting Single Stocks

<p>On Thursday, the Nikkei came out with an <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Economy/BOJ-to-widen-interest-rate-target-range-to-support-bank-profits" target="_blank" rel="noopener">article</a> during the lunch break of equities trading. The headline said <em>"BOJ to widen interest rate target range to support bank profits" </em>and indeed in the article it noted that the BOJ would allow the long end of the curve to fluctuate more widely, creating a slightly steeper curve. This could lead to slightly better bank profits less because of the extra 5bp on the curve but more because of the expectation of forcing borrowers to pay more on an absolute basis. </p><p>What was MORE important for equity markets was the idea that the BOJ <em>"would also abolish its target for purchasing exchange-traded funds, now 6 trillion yen ($55 billion) per year, and instead vow to make such purchases only in times of market turmoil."</em></p><p>The article also suggested that the "Target" would be removed for the ¥90bn of J-REITs they buy as a base case (doubled now to ¥180bn as the ¥6trln was doubled to ¥12trln in the depths of the covid crash of March 2020). </p><p>This move caused Nikkei to underperform TOPIX on the day. TOPIX actually ended up on the day, and ended above where the market closed the AM session before the article came out. Nikkei fell, and started underperforming TOPIX from that point on. </p><section class="figure"><figure class="editor-figure mceNonEditable"><img src="https://static-prod.smartkarma.com/images/media/000/195/872/original/Screenshot+2021-03-21+at+3.26.17+PM.png?1616311594" class="editor-image img-responsive" data-smartkarma-image-id="195872"></figure><p></p></section><p>Nikkei underperformed TOPIX in the AM session on Friday, and when the BOJ announcements came mid-day on Friday, there were additional subtleties involved. </p><p>The details are <a href="https://www.boj.or.jp/en/announcements/release_2021/rel210319c.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>. The presentation with the basic details is <a href="https://www.boj.or.jp/en/announcements/release_2021/k210319b.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.</p><ul>
<li>The target rates for ETF and REIT buying will be abolished, but the current "Target Rate" of annual buying will become annual maxima (¥12 trillion for ETFs, ¥180bn for J-REITs, with ongoing maximum ownership limits on ETFs in place).</li>
<li>Buying of ETFs and J-REITs will be conducted "as necessary" "in times of market turbulence" and such buying will be done only on TOPIX ETFs.</li>
<li>The "Special Rules for Purchases of ETFs to Support Firms Proactively Investing in Physical and Human Capital" will continue as before with only specific ETFs permitted in this group. The amount of ~¥300bn/year and ¥1.2bn per business day will continue.</li>
</ul><p>It based the new policy on the Reference <a href="https://www.boj.or.jp/en/announcements/release_2021/k210319c.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">document</a> which backs up the changes in policy is <em>much</em> more interesting reading.  Appendix 5 and Chart 12 are the parts you want to read.</p><p>The hypotheses and results are described here.</p><section class="figure"><figure class="editor-figure mceNonEditable"><img src="https://static-prod.smartkarma.com/images/media/000/195/869/original/Screenshot+2021-03-21+at+3.02.28+PM.png?1616310186" class="editor-image img-responsive" data-smartkarma-image-id="195869"></figure></section><p>There are a couple of other side conclusions but the base understanding is...</p><div class="content-highlight"><p>When the BOJ steps into the market in size, in times of market turbulence, and when stocks are trading below their medium-term average, it has a greater effect per dollar spent on market-wide risk premia as measured in option premia than buying in normal times, and size matters when looking at the risk premia change on single stocks.  </p></div><h3>What This Means</h3><ul>
<li>When the BOJ steps into the market in size, in times of market turbulence, and when stocks are trading below their medium-term average, it has a greater effect per dollar spent on market-wide risk premia as measured in option premia than buying in normal times, and size matters when looking at the risk premia change on single stocks.  </li>
<li>Expect the BOJ to follow the concept of its study (Appendix 5 again).</li>
<li>Expect the BOJ to pay greater attention to futures activity. </li>
</ul><h3>What This Does NOT Mean</h3><ul><li>It does NOT mean the BOJ will be selling any ETFs.</li></ul><hr><p>It is worthwhile taking a look at WHY the market reacted the way it did on Thursday and Friday afternoon, and it is worthwhile looking at what the BOJ ETF buying might look like going forward. </p><p>So we do so below the fold.</p><p>Note: This is part 1 of the analysis of potential future BOJ ETF Buying. Part II looks at the difference in single stock makeup. </p>

On Thursday, the Nikkei came out with an article during the lunch break of equities trading. The headline said "BOJ to widen interest rate target range to support bank profits" and indeed in the article it noted that the BOJ would allow the long end of the curve to fluctuate more widely, creating a slightly steeper curve. This could lead to slightly better bank profits less because of the extra 5bp on the curve but more because of the expectation of forcing borrowers to pay more on an absolute basis. What was MORE important for equity markets was the idea that the BOJ "would also abolish its target for purchasing exchange-traded funds, now 6 trillion yen ($55 billion) per year, and instead vow to make such purchases only in times of market turmoil."The article also suggested that the "Target" would be removed for the ¥90bn of J-REITs they buy as a base case (doubled now to ¥180bn as the ¥6trln was doubled to ¥12trln in the depths of the covid crash of March 2020). This move caused Nikkei to underperform TOPIX on the day. TOPIX actually ended up on the day, and ended above where the market closed the AM session before the article came out. Nikkei fell, and started underperforming TOPIX from that point on. Nikkei underperformed TOPIX in the AM session on Friday, and when the BOJ announcements came mid-day on Friday, there were additional subtleties involved. The details are here. The presentation with the basic details is here.
The target rates for ETF and REIT buying will be abolished, but the current "Target Rate" of annual buying will become annual maxima (¥12 trillion for ETFs, ¥180bn for J-REITs, with ongoing maximum ownership limits on ETFs in place).
Buying of ETFs and J-REITs will be conducted "as necessary" "in times of market turbulence" and such buying will be done only on TOPIX ETFs.
The "Special Rules for Purchases of ETFs to Support Firms Proactively Investing in Physical and Human Capital" will continue as before with only specific ETFs permitted in this group. The amount of ~¥300bn/year and ¥1.2bn per business day will continue.
It based the new policy on the Reference document which backs up the changes in policy is much more interesting reading.  Appendix 5 and Chart 12 are the parts you want to read.The hypotheses and results are described here.There are a couple of other side conclusions but the base understanding is...When the BOJ steps into the market in size, in times of market turbulence, and when stocks are trading below their medium-term average, it has a greater effect per dollar spent on market-wide risk premia as measured in option premia than buying in normal times, and size matters when looking at the risk premia change on single stocks.  What This Means
When the BOJ steps into the market in size, in times of market turbulence, and when stocks are trading below their medium-term average, it has a greater effect per dollar spent on market-wide risk premia as measured in option premia than buying in normal times, and size matters when looking at the risk premia change on single stocks.  
Expect the BOJ to follow the concept of its study (Appendix 5 again).
Expect the BOJ to pay greater attention to futures activity. 
What This Does NOT MeanIt does NOT mean the BOJ will be selling any ETFs.It is worthwhile taking a look at WHY the market reacted the way it did on Thursday and Friday afternoon, and it is worthwhile looking at what the BOJ ETF buying might look like going forward. So we do so below the fold.Note: This is part 1 of the analysis of potential future BOJ ETF Buying. Part II looks at the difference in single stock makeup. 

Quantifying the BOJ Change in ETF Policy: Assessing Future ETF Buying Methodology

Pan-Asia Index Rebalances/ Events/ Delta One, Periscope Analytics

Brian Freitas

Pan-Asia Index Rebalances/ Events/ Delta One

<p>At its Monetary Policy Meeting that concluded on 19 March, the Bank of Japan (BOJ) announced that they would purchase ETFs and J-REIT as necessary with upper limits of about 12 trillion yen and about 180 billion yen respectively. While the upper limits were originally set as a temporary measure in response to the impact of COVID-19, the Bank will maintain them even after COVID-19 subsides.</p><p>The big change was the announcement that the BOJ would only purchase ETFs tracking the <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/tokyo-stock-exchange-tokyo-price-index-topix" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:22910:1" rel="noopener">Tokyo Stock Exchange Tokyo Price Index Topix (TPX INDEX)</a>. This means no more flows to the <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/nikkei-225" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:22909:1" rel="noopener">Nikkei 225 (NKY INDEX)</a> and JPX Nikkei 400 ETFs.</p><p>From the increase in ETF AUM over calendar year 2020, we estimate that around 88% of the BOJ buying went into <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/tokyo-stock-exchange-tokyo-price-index-topix" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:22910:1" rel="noopener">Tokyo Stock Exchange Tokyo Price Index Topix (TPX INDEX)</a> ETFs, with smaller amounts going into the <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/nikkei-225" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:22909:1" rel="noopener">Nikkei 225 (NKY INDEX)</a> and JPX Nikkei 400 ETFs.</p><p>While the impact of BOJ only buying <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/tokyo-stock-exchange-tokyo-price-index-topix" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:22910:1" rel="noopener">Tokyo Stock Exchange Tokyo Price Index Topix (TPX INDEX)</a> linked ETFs is not material for single stocks in ADV terms, there could be a bigger impact on the <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/nikkei-225" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:22909:1" rel="noopener">Nikkei 225 (NKY INDEX)</a> constituents if other NKY ETF holders redeem their units and sell the underlying shares.</p><p>The NT ratio (NKY/TPX) had started to move lower over the last 15 trading days due to the shift from growth to value stocks. The BOJ announcement could take the ratio lower in the short term on a change in sentiment and short term flows due to repositioning of portfolios.</p><p><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/nissan-chemical-industries" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:4102:1" rel="noopener">Nissan Chemical Industries (4021 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/comsys-holdings-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:20548:1" rel="noopener">Comsys Holdings (1721 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/konami-holdings-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:13236:1" rel="noopener">Konami Holdings (9766 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/kikkoman-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:11720:1" rel="noopener">Kikkoman Corp (2801 JP)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/fast-retailing-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:751:1" rel="noopener">Fast Retailing (9983 JP)</a> will be among the most negatively affected stocks, but the impact is quite small.</p><p><a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/tokyo-stock-exchange-tokyo-price-index-topix" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:22910:1" rel="noopener">Tokyo Stock Exchange Tokyo Price Index Topix (TPX INDEX)</a> stocks (that will have passive BOJ inflows of at least US$5m) that will have the largest impact in terms of ADV to trade are <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/hankyu-hanshin-holdings-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:13058:1" rel="noopener">Hankyu Hanshin Holdings (9042 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/kintetsu-group-holdings-co-l" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:18507:1" rel="noopener">Kintetsu Group Holdings Co L (9041 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/hisamitsu-pharmaceutical-co" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:17008:1" rel="noopener">Hisamitsu Pharmaceutical Co (4530 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/bank-of-kyoto-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:5248:1" rel="noopener">Bank Of Kyoto (8369 JP)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/hakuhodo-dy-holdings-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:8736:1" rel="noopener">Hakuhodo Dy Holdings (2433 JP)</a>. </p>

At its Monetary Policy Meeting that concluded on 19 March, the Bank of Japan (BOJ) announced that they would purchase ETFs and J-REIT as necessary with upper limits of about 12 trillion yen and about 180 billion yen respectively. While the upper limits were originally set as a temporary measure in response to the impact of COVID-19, the Bank will maintain them even after COVID-19 subsides.The big change was the announcement that the BOJ would only purchase ETFs tracking the Tokyo Stock Exchange Tokyo Price Index Topix (TPX INDEX). This means no more flows to the Nikkei 225 (NKY INDEX) and JPX Nikkei 400 ETFs.From the increase in ETF AUM over calendar year 2020, we estimate that around 88% of the BOJ buying went into Tokyo Stock Exchange Tokyo Price Index Topix (TPX INDEX) ETFs, with smaller amounts going into the Nikkei 225 (NKY INDEX) and JPX Nikkei 400 ETFs.While the impact of BOJ only buying Tokyo Stock Exchange Tokyo Price Index Topix (TPX INDEX) linked ETFs is not material for single stocks in ADV terms, there could be a bigger impact on the Nikkei 225 (NKY INDEX) constituents if other NKY ETF holders redeem their units and sell the underlying shares.The NT ratio (NKY/TPX) had started to move lower over the last 15 trading days due to the shift from growth to value stocks. The BOJ announcement could take the ratio lower in the short term on a change in sentiment and short term flows due to repositioning of portfolios.Nissan Chemical Industries (4021 JP), Comsys Holdings (1721 JP), Konami Holdings (9766 JP), Kikkoman Corp (2801 JP) and Fast Retailing (9983 JP) will be among the most negatively affected stocks, but the impact is quite small.Tokyo Stock Exchange Tokyo Price Index Topix (TPX INDEX) stocks (that will have passive BOJ inflows of at least US$5m) that will have the largest impact in terms of ADV to trade are Hankyu Hanshin Holdings (9042 JP), Kintetsu Group Holdings Co L (9041 JP), Hisamitsu Pharmaceutical Co (4530 JP), Bank Of Kyoto (8369 JP) and Hakuhodo Dy Holdings (2433 JP). 

BOJ Buying to Focus on TOPIX ETFs: Big Headline, Smaller Impact

Quantitative Analysis

<div><p>The Asia Short Interest weekly looks at moves in market wide short interest and highlights movements in stock specific short interest across Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and Taiwan using the last available data published by the relevant authorities.</p></div><div><p>Hong Kong saw shorts rise on <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/xinyi-solar-holdings-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:318:1" rel="noopener">Xinyi Solar Holdings (968 HK)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/lenovo-group-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:13359:1" rel="noopener">Lenovo (992 HK)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/ping-an-insurance-grp-co-of-china-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:12880:1" rel="noopener">Ping An Insurance (H) (2318 HK)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/beijing-kuaishou-technology-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:29725:1" rel="noopener">Kuaishou Technology (1024 HK)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/jd-health-international-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:29677:1" rel="noopener">JD Health (6618 HK)</a> while there was short covering on <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/alibaba-group" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:28434:1" rel="noopener">Alibaba Group (9988 HK)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/xiaomi-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:24409:1" rel="noopener">Xiaomi Corp (1810 HK)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/haier-smart-home-co-ltd-b3ef445f-0f54-4586-8c58-9073de98d60e" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:31105:1" rel="noopener">Haier Smart Home Co Ltd (6690 HK)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/wuxi-apptec-co-ltd-bf4a1265-beef-48b6-b82d-29308426030f" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:27795:1" rel="noopener">WuXi AppTec Co. Ltd. (2359 HK)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/aia-group-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:14895:1" rel="noopener">AIA Group Ltd (1299 HK)</a>. Shorts increased in Communication Services, Information Technology and Materials stocks, while decreasing in Utilities, Consumer Staples, Energy, Consumer Discretionary and Health Care stocks.</p></div><div><p>In Japan, stocks that saw the most shorts were <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/seven-i-holdings-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:1041:1" rel="noopener">Seven &amp; I Holdings (3382 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/toshiba-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:637:1" rel="noopener">Toshiba Corp (6502 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/monex-group-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:14211:1" rel="noopener">Monex Group Inc (8698 JP)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/nihon-m-a-center-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:17616:1" rel="noopener">Nihon M&amp;A Center (2127 JP)</a> while shorts decreased on <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/rakuten-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:31:1" rel="noopener">Rakuten Inc (4755 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/fast-retailing-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:751:1" rel="noopener">Fast Retailing (9983 JP)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/itochu-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:18448:1" rel="noopener">Itochu Corp (8001 JP)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/rohm-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:2953:1" rel="noopener">ROHM Co Ltd (6963 JP)</a>. Shorts increased in Consumer Staples, Industrials, Financials and Materials, while shorts covered in the Consumer Discretionary sector.</p></div><div><p>In Korea, short increased on <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/doosan-infracore-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:3982:1" rel="noopener">Doosan Infracore (042670 KS)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/lotte-chemical-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:8757:1" rel="noopener">Lotte Chemical (011170 KS)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/posco-chemical-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:12421:1" rel="noopener">Posco Chemical Co Ltd (003670 KS)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/hyundai-motor-co" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:155:1" rel="noopener">Hyundai Motor Co (005380 KS)</a> while shorts decreased on <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/sk-hynix-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:16955:1" rel="noopener">SK Hynix (000660 KS)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/celltrion-inc" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:991:1" rel="noopener">Celltrion Inc (068270 KS)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/korea-electric-power-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:16:1" rel="noopener">Korea Electric Power (015760 KS)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/lg-display-co-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:7145:1" rel="noopener">LG Display (034220 KS)</a>. </p></div><div><p>Stocks in Taiwan that saw the highest increase in shorts were <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/taiwan-semiconductor-manufacturing-company" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:11230:1" rel="noopener">TSMC (2330 TT)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/pegatron-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:12852:1" rel="noopener">Pegatron Corp (4938 TT)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/fitipower-integrated-tech" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:8712:1" rel="noopener">Fitipower Integrated Tech (4961 TT)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/walsin-technology-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:11084:1" rel="noopener">Walsin Technology (2492 TT)</a> while shorts were covered on <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/taiwan-cement" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:19736:1" rel="noopener">Taiwan Cement (1101 TT)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/evergreen-marine-corp-ltd" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:15428:1" rel="noopener">Evergreen Marine Corp (2603 TT)</a>, <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/innolux-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:4509:1" rel="noopener">Innolux Corp (3481 TT)</a> and <a href="https://www.smartkarma.com/entities/richwave-technology-corp" target="_blank" data-smartkarma-citation="entities:18629:1" rel="noopener">Richwave Technology (4968 TT)</a>.</p></div>

The Asia Short Interest weekly looks at moves in market wide short interest and highlights movements in stock specific short interest across Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and Taiwan using the last available data published by the relevant authorities.Hong Kong saw shorts rise on Xinyi Solar Holdings (968 HK), Lenovo (992 HK), Ping An Insurance (H) (2318 HK), Kuaishou Technology (1024 HK) and JD Health (6618 HK) while there was short covering on Alibaba Group (9988 HK), Xiaomi Corp (1810 HK), Haier Smart Home Co Ltd (6690 HK), WuXi AppTec Co. Ltd. (2359 HK) and AIA Group Ltd (1299 HK). Shorts increased in Communication Services, Information Technology and Materials stocks, while decreasing in Utilities, Consumer Staples, Energy, Consumer Discretionary and Health Care stocks.In Japan, stocks that saw the most shorts were Seven &amp; I Holdings (3382 JP), Toshiba Corp (6502 JP), Monex Group Inc (8698 JP) and Nihon M&amp;A Center (2127 JP) while shorts decreased on Rakuten Inc (4755 JP), Fast Retailing (9983 JP), Itochu Corp (8001 JP) and ROHM Co Ltd (6963 JP). Shorts increased in Consumer Staples, Industrials, Financials and Materials, while shorts covered in the Consumer Discretionary sector.In Korea, short increased on Doosan Infracore (042670 KS), Lotte Chemical (011170 KS), Posco Chemical Co Ltd (003670 KS) and Hyundai Motor Co (005380 KS) while shorts decreased on SK Hynix (000660 KS), Celltrion Inc (068270 KS), Korea Electric Power (015760 KS) and LG Display (034220 KS). Stocks in Taiwan that saw the highest increase in shorts were TSMC (2330 TT), Pegatron Corp (4938 TT), Fitipower Integrated Tech (4961 TT) and Walsin Technology (2492 TT) while shorts were covered on Taiwan Cement (1101 TT), Evergreen Marine Corp (2603 TT), Innolux Corp (3481 TT) and Richwave Technology (4968 TT).

Asia Short Interest: Kuaishou, JD Health, Xiaomi, 7&I, Monex, Rakuten, Hynix, Hyundai, Fitipower

Japan

FAST RETAILING CO., LTD. operates a chain of clothing stores, UNIQLO, throughout Japan and in other markets overseas including UK, China, Hong Kong, South Korea, US, France, Singapore and Russia.  The Company designs, manufactures, and retails its own line of casual clothing.

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Fast Retailing (9983 JP)

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Asia Short Interest: Kuaishou, JD Health, Xiaomi, 7&I, Monex, Rakuten, Hynix, Hyundai, Fitipower

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Brian Freitas

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