TOKYO -- When the Nikkei Stock Average surged past 20,000 on June 2, Yukihiro Kumagai, Japan equity strategist at BNP Paribas Securities Japan, told customers that this semiconductor bull will keep charging.
While auto stocks like Toyota Motor, once the main driver of the Japanese stock market, are sputtering, companies demonstrating their power to innovate and raise prices are now pushing up the benchmark index.
