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October 2026 edition · Methodology GNT-BDS v1.1.1 · Last updated 2026-10-23日本語 / English
Japan IR IndexIndependent research · English disclosure & shareholder communication

IR Insights

Six gaps in English IR, from 128 companies

We checked the English disclosure of 128 TSE-listed companies on the same 34 questions (reviewed September 2026 to 23 October 2026). The six gaps below are the questions with the most companies scoring 0–2, chosen by the data, not by us. Most can be closed with documents the companies already produce.

The 128 companies are a research selection, not a sample of the market, drawn largely from machinery, electrical equipment, chemicals and pharmaceuticals. An answer we looked for and did not find counts as 0. Every figure can be recomputed from the answers CSV on the data page. Corrections to our record are our own errors and are never counted as a company improving.

The six gaps

Figure 1. Share of the 128 companies scoring 0–2
  1. R5English version stated as authoritative, not subordinate to Japanese95% (121 of 128)
  2. G6Shareholder vote results disclosed in English84% (108 of 128)
  3. F6Multi-year financial data file (Excel or CSV) downloadable in English66% (85 of 128)
  4. F4Annual securities report available in English in any form62% (80 of 128)
  5. G7Cross-shareholdings in English with reduction schedule and rationale49% (63 of 128)
  6. S5Results-briefing transcripts or Q&A published in English42% (54 of 128)

None of the 128 companies scores 3 or more on all six; 79 score 0–2 on four or more. The gaps are not concentrated in a few laggards: most companies share most of them.

Figure 3. Companies by how many of the six they score 0–2 on
0081162253264265276

Number of the six scoring 0–2

01　The English carries no standing of its own

R5 English version stated as authoritative, not subordinate to Japanese — 121 of 128 score 0–2

Nearly every English document says the Japanese original prevails. As a legal backstop that is reasonable, but when it is the only thing a company says about its English, a foreign reader is told their version does not count.

Distribution (128 companies): 3: 7 · 2: 90 · 1: 27 · 0: 4

The best score is 3, held by 7 companies; none scores 5.

The fix

Add one sentence to the English IR page: what the English disclosure covers, when it is published relative to the Japanese, and who maintains it.

Cost: an afternoon (one sentence)

02　No English vote results

G6 Shareholder vote results disclosed in English — 108 of 128 score 0–2

Companies translate the AGM notice so that overseas holders vote, then publish the tallies only in Japanese, in the extraordinary report. The shareholder asked to vote never learns how the vote went.

Distribution (128 companies): 5: 20 · 2: 35 · 0: 73

Companies at the top score today

The fix

Translate the voting-results notice or the extraordinary report: votes for, against and abstaining, and the approval ratio, per resolution.

Cost: one document a year

03　No downloadable financial data

F6 Multi-year financial data file (Excel or CSV) downloadable in English — 85 of 128 score 0–2

Five years of results, balance sheet, cash flow and per-share data sit in the tanshin every quarter, but an analyst has to retype them. A PDF fact book does not count; a spreadsheet does.

Distribution (128 companies): 5: 31 · 4: 11 · 3: 1 · 0: 85

Companies at the top score today

The fix

Publish one Excel or CSV file with English labels: five years or more of P&L, balance sheet, cash flow and per-share data, segments if possible.

Cost: a day of a finance analyst’s time (one document)

04　No English securities report in any form

F4 Annual securities report available in English in any form — 80 of 128 score 0–2

The yuho holds the risk factors, the business description and the audited statements. We score generously: a full translation, a summary or an English section all count. Most companies still have none.

Distribution (128 companies): 5: 7 · 4: 12 · 3: 29 · 0: 80

Companies at the top score today

The fix

If a full translation is out of reach, an English summary of the business description and risk factors covers most of what a foreign investor looks for.

Cost: a year (a translation budget)

05　Cross-shareholdings without a plan in English

G7 Cross-shareholdings in English with reduction schedule and rationale — 63 of 128 score 0–2

The English governance report usually carries the boilerplate policy. What is missing is the count and amount held, a reduction target with a date, progress against it, and the board’s reasons for what remains.

Distribution (128 companies): 5: 19 · 4: 5 · 3: 41 · 2: 27 · 1: 1 · 0: 35

Companies at the top score today

The fix

In English: holdings (count and amount), a target and schedule, progress, and the rationale for each remaining holding class. A company that holds none scores 5 by saying so.

Cost: a quarter (one drafting round)

06　No English results-briefing Q&A

S5 Results-briefing transcripts or Q&A published in English — 54 of 128 score 0–2

The briefing is held, the Japanese Q&A summary goes up, and the English reader gets the slides without the questions, which is usually where the information is.

Distribution (128 companies): 5: 17 · 4: 53 · 3: 4 · 0: 54

Companies at the top score today

The fix

Publish an English Q&A summary for every briefing that has a Japanese one, at the same time if possible.

Cost: a quarter (one summary per briefing)

By industry

Figure 2. Share scoring 0–2, by industry
QuestionMachineryMach.
n=39		Electrical equipmentElec.
n=33		ChemicalsChem.
n=18		PharmaceuticalsPharma
n=12		OtherOther
n=26
R5 The English carries no standing of its own95%94%89%100%96%
G6 No English vote results90%82%72%92%85%
F6 No downloadable financial data72%61%50%83%69%
F4 No English securities report in any form62%52%72%83%62%
G7 Cross-shareholdings without a plan in English49%58%39%50%46%
S5 No English results-briefing Q&A56%33%39%33%38%

Industries are TSE 33-sector codes; the 9 smaller sectors are grouped as Other. With small groups, one company moves a percentage a lot.

The share scoring 0–2 differs most between industries on F6 (No downloadable financial data: Pharmaceuticals 83%, Chemicals 50%) and F4 (No English securities report in any form: Pharmaceuticals 83%, Electrical equipment 52%). Median total scores: Machinery 76.4, Electrical equipment 80.8, Chemicals 82.8, Pharmaceuticals 75.4, Other 78.2.

What it means

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