Financial assets held by households in Japan totaled 2,230 trillion yen (about 15 trillion U.S. dollars) as of the end of 2024, up 4.0 percent from a year earlier to a new record, Bank of Japan data showed Friday.

Supported by rising stock prices following a tumble in August last year, stockholdings went up 9.5 percent to 298 trillion yen, while investment trusts soared 27.4 percent to 136 trillion yen, the data showed.

The balance of cash and deposits, which accounted for half of the total, gained 0.6 percent to 1,134 trillion yen. Of them, cash shrank 3.4 percent to 105 trillion yen due to higher prices and an increase in cashless payment services.

Insurance products edged up 0.5 percent to 383 trillion yen on the back of a weakening yen, which pushed up the balance of foreign currency-denominated assets. (1 U.S. dollar equals about 149 Japanese yen)