Japan’s retail investors are feeling bold. Margin buying balances on the Tokyo and Nagoya stock exchanges climbed to ¥6.3915 trillion, roughly $40 billion, as of May 29, 2026. That is the highest reading since records began in December 1994.
To put the scale in perspective: Japanese individual investors simultaneously held over 16 trillion yen, around $99 billion, in brokerage accounts as of late June 2026.
What is actually happening here
Japanese retail investors have been piling into this trade with particular enthusiasm in the semiconductor and electronics sectors. Companies like Kioxia Holdings, Murata Manufacturing, and Ibiden attracted concentrated attention during the week of May 25 through 29, when the margin balance peak was recorded.
Margin trading volume rose 39% year-over-year in fiscal 2025, reaching approximately 618 trillion yen, or about $4 trillion.
