Japan's industrial and capital markets are suffering mightily from the aftershocks of the devastating earthquake, but U.S. mutual fund managers remain bullish on the country and see buying opportunities among the rubbles, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Daisuke Nomoto, a PM at Columbia Management, wrote in a research note that the firm expects the construction, metal products, and glass and ceramics products sectors "to perform relatively well on this occasion" as they did following the Kobe earthquake in 1995.

Tom Murphy, sector leader for investment-grade credit at Columbia Management Investment Advisers LLC [see profile] in Minneapolis, told the pub that U.S.-based investors would have more interest in the reinsurers and their exposures to the unfolding disaster.

A Bloomberg article also took a similar tone, quoting Kimball Brooker of First Eagle Investment Management LLC [see profile] as saying: "You have to ask what real value has been affected company by company, and it’s not easy getting that information in these circumstances."

Ray Lewis, a spokesman for Brandes Investment Partners [see profile], also told the wire service that his firm is closely evaluating developments in Japan and the potential impact on companies in its portfolio. 

Edited by: Hung Tran


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