Prime minister of Japan Shinzo Abe's fiscal policy has intrigued international and domestic investors.

Mr Abe announced a goal of raising gross domestic product (GDP) by 20 per cent to 600 trillion yen by 2020.

Can the reforms of 2016 lead to strong returns from Japan's diverse and mature equity market or will the so-called Abenomics have proved to be ineffective at helping to return the country to growth?

So far, companies have been starting to show signs of good corporate governance and shareholder remuneration through buy-backs and dividend payouts, while there are many pockets of strong growth among some Japanese equities. 

This guide explores the current state of Japanese equities and the effect - intended or actual - of the fiscal policies put in place over recent months.

It looks at whether Japanese companies can continue to grow and perform strongly, despite the economy, and what the prospects for investing in the country might be over the short and medium-term.

Contributors to this guide are: David Jane, fund manager on Miton's multi-asset fund range; Nathan Gibbs, client portfolio manager of Japanese equities for Schroders; Cyrique Bourbon, portfolio manager at Morningstar's Investment Management group; Ben Willis, head of research for Whitechurch Financial Consultants; Katsunori Kitakura, strategist at SuMi Trust; Kwok Chern-Yeh, head of Japanese equities at Aberdeen Asset Management; Robin Black, investment manager for global equities at Kames Capital; Nick Peters, multi-asset portfolio manager for Fidelity International; and Alex Blake, client manager on the Baillie Gifford Japanese equities team.