Foreigners returned as net buyers of Japanese stocks last week, buoyed by positive global market sentiment that propelled domestic shares to fresh record highs.

According to exchange data, foreigners purchased a net 68.31 billion yen (S$616.6 million) of Japanese stocks in the week to March 1, compared with a marginal 2.83 billion yen of net selling in the previous week.

The bulk of their investments was in cash equities, where they bought 383.48 billion yen worth of shares. This was the largest weekly net purchase in five weeks.

In contrast, they sold about 315.17 billion yen in derivative contracts, the highest weekly net selling in a month.

The Nikkei share average reached new record levels last week, climbing roughly 2 per cent over the week, its fifth consecutive weekly gain.

However, Japanese stocks shed more than 1 per cent on Thursday (Mar 7), following the Nikkei’s record high of 40,472.11.

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Foreigners, meanwhile, pumped in a net 2.75 trillion yen into short-term Japanese bonds last week, the most in a week since Jan 5, data from the Ministry of Finance revealed.

Japanese long-term debt securities also attracted about 572.5 billion worth of foreign capital on a net basis, the biggest amount in a week since Jan 12.

Japanese investors acquired about 484.6 billion yen of long-term overseas bonds while exiting a marginal 3.2 billion yen of short-term instruments after five weekly net purchases in a row.

Domestic investors, meanwhile, sold a net 517.2 billion yen of foreign equities, snapping their three-week-long buying streak. REUTERS