TOKYO -- Japanese stocks were on fire this year, with the benchmark Nikkei Stock Average soaring to a 26-year high. But a closer look at this and other indexes shows that small- and midsize capitalization issues -- rather than blue chips -- were the engine behind the market rally.
The Nikkei Jasdaq Average, a gauge for many tech startups, scored the biggest gain of 44% among Japan's 13 leading indexes since the end of last year, while the JPX-Nikkei Mid and Small Cap Index took third place with a 31% rise. Companies in the information technology, robotics and other sectors with high-growth prospects attracted a broad range of investors.
