TOKYO -- Japan's expanded tax-free investment program is fueling a price war in the securities industry as asset management companies compete to offer low-fee index funds that are growing popular among retail investors.
Index funds, which passively invest in stocks included in benchmark indexes, have so far dominated sales rankings for mutual funds at online brokerages. 924.5 billion yen ($6.25 billion) flowed into overseas stock-focused index funds this year as of Jan. 30, according to estimates by Yusuke Maeyama, a researcher at NLI Research Institute. That is more than double the previous record of about 410 billion yen in October last year.
