Economics & Strategy - Equity Strategy - Second Team

Although he slips one notch to No. 2, J.P. Morgan’s Hajime Kitano is still considered by one client to be “the only strategist who understands the structure of the global capital markets.”

Hajime Kitano J.P. Morgan

Although he slips one notch to No. 2, J.P. Morgan’s Hajime Kitano is still considered by one client to be “the only strategist who understands the structure of the global capital markets.” Kitano is recommending the financial sectors — banks, insurers and securities firms — because they “have not really started performing,” even though they have gained some ground since last fall. Additionally, Kitano thinks that Japanese stocks are on their way up despite the strong yen, observing that the correlation between share prices and the exchange rate is not necessarily stable. “The current economic environment justifies a bullish outlook on share prices irrespective of the exchange rate,” he says. — Carolyn Koo

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