TSE to remove nearly 700 firms from Topix, add 35, JPX unit says (updated)
UPDATE 1-TSE to remove nearly 700 firms from Topix, add 35, JPX unit says Adds details in paragraphs 3-8
By Junko Fujita and Hiroko Hamada
TOKYO, Oct 7 (Reuters) - The Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) plans to remove nearly 700 firms from its main Topix index .TOPX and add 35 companies in the first major reshuffle of its main index, as the exchange continues reforms to attract investors.
After the reshuffle, the Topix index will be composed of 986 stocks, about 40% fewer than the current components, said JPX Market Innovation and Research, a unit of Japan Exchanges Group Inc 8697.T.
The move comes as the TSE presses ahead with the reform of its trading platform, along with its push to improve corporate governance.
The Topix is the main index tracked by large institutional investors, including the GPIF, the world's largest pension fund.
Discount supermarket chain Trial Holdings 141A.T, utility clothing and workwear retailer Workman 7564.T, and autonomous driving startup Tier IV 593A.T are among those joining the index.
Human resources company Pasona Group 2168.T and ball bearings maker Tsubaki Nakashima 6464.T are among those being removed.
The exchange will reduce the weightings of those stocks to be removed to zero by July 2028, JPX Market Innovation and Research said.
The exchange will conduct the second round of its regular reshuffle in October next year.
(Reporting by Junko Fujita and Hiroko Hamada; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Kate Mayberry)