Nikkei 225 Ends Lower after Marking Record Intraday High

Tokyo, May 14 (Jiji Press)–Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 stock average finished lower Thursday after rewriting its record intraday high in the morning, with some shares losing ground after their earnings announcements. The index of 225 select issues listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s top-tier Prime section ended the day’s session at 62,654.05, down 618.06 points, or 0.97 pct, from Wednesday. The broader TOPIX index lost 40.21 points, or 1.03 pct, to 3,879.27. Following higher information technology stocks in the U.S. market Wednesday, semiconductor and electronic component makers were hunted on the TSE. The Nikkei average hit a record intraday high of 63,799.32. After a round of buying, however, profit-taking emerged. Artificial intelligence-linked Fujikura plummeted as its earnings released in the afternoon did not meet market expectations. Selling spread to other AI-linked names, pushing down the Nikkei average. Many market players pointed to an overheating of Tokyo stocks, mainly in the AI and high-tech sectors. “The view that positive factors had been exhausted after many earnings announcements,” a major securities house official said. In interdealer bond trading in Tokyo on Thursday, the yield on the most recent issue of 10-year Japanese government bonds, seen as a benchmark long-term interest rate, hit a fresh 29-year high of 2.635 pct. Fears of accelerating inflation intensified further, and expectations for a U.S. interest rate cut receded. U.S. long-term interest rates remained high, helping buoy Japanese rates. “Few investors want to buy bonds aggressively, given the inflationary trend and concerns about Japanese fiscal expansion,” an asset management company official said. Many market players speculate that the government is considering drafting a supplementary budget for fiscal 2026. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]