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What Is the Nikkei 225

The Nikkei 225 is the index of 225 companies on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, chosen and published by a newspaper, added by share price like the Dow and priced in yen. This paper shows what it is, who makes it, how the share-price rule weighs the members, when the exchange sits and breaks for lunch, and how JP225 appears on a platform with its tick value and currency. After reading it you can find the Nikkei on your platform and read its Specification, knowing what the points and the yen are.

Difficulty
Intermediate
Reading time
5 min
Pages
8
Reviewed by
Saman Rahbar

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The Nikkei 225, in five lines

The Nikkei 225 is the index of 225 companies on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, chosen and published by the Nikkei newspaper since 1950. Like the Dow it is added by share price rather than by the size of the companies, so a high-priced share counts most. The number is in points, and the points are in yen. This paper uses 40,000.00 as a round example throughout, because this library holds no Nikkei bars. The exchange trades in two sittings with a lunch break between; on a platform the index appears as JP225 or JPN225.

A newspaper

Picture a newspaper, because that is what the Nikkei is: Nihon Keizai Shimbun, the business daily of Tokyo. Most indexes are made by an exchange or an index company. This one is made by a newspaper, which chooses the 225 companies, reviews the list each year and prints the number. The exchange lists the shares; the newspaper does the adding up and owns the name. The level on the page is this paper's example, not a quote.

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