This trend could unleash a wave of foreign acquisitions of Japanese manufacturers and facilities. At the least, it is igniting interest in those companies' stocks. In addition, authorities at the Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) have also been pushing hard on Japan's many capital-inefficient companies, whose price to book (P/B) ratio is below 1. They either must shape up or face financial penalties. Keep in mind that, at the time the TSE began its push earlier in 2023, more than half of all TSE stocks were trading below their book value ! The reason was often too high a reserve of cash. Though the penalties are years away, companies are already starting to follow the new script. Buyback announcements in the 2022 fiscal year hit an all-time record. Cash dividend payouts from those aforementioned cash piles are also at a record. In simple terms, these TSE reforms are having a big impact by changing cultural expectations (becoming more shareholder friendly) of Japanese corporate management.