From negative rates and yield-curve control to normalization: how BOJ meetings work, why banks rally when rates rise while exporters watch the yen, what the central bank’s legacy ETF holdings mean, and a practical checklist for reading the market reaction to policy statements.
The Nikkei 225 fell 1.92% to 67,242.73 on Monday as Middle East escalation and an Asia-wide rout hammered chip stocks, while banks led a small band of gainers. Short selling ran at 38.9% of TSE turnover and the Nikkei VI held at stressed levels.
Tokyo ended the week with a tech-led advance: the Nikkei 225 rose 1.20% to 68,557.73 on options SQ day, SoftBank Group jumped 10.65%, and the yen firmed to 161.67. Beneath the rally, the TSE short-selling ratio held at an elevated 41.6% and 43% of loanable issues carried squeeze premiums.
Short sales recently averaged around 38% of all Tokyo trading value — and that is normal. A practical guide to the TSE’s daily short-selling data: the two regulatory buckets, why a high ratio is not simply bearish, and how to cross-check it against weekly investor flows.