Smaller retailers should yield best results of structural shift

The first half of the year was an uncomfortable time for investors in the Japanese stock market, irrespective of what size companies they chose to put their money in. First, they had to contend with news of an investigation into Livedoor, the internet services company, which led to a sharp fall in equities in January. Then, having recovered from this setback, the market suffered an even bigger fall in May and June when it felt the full impact of the global sell-off in equities. This was principally driven by global fears about inflation and rising interest rates. Moreover, the stock mar...