The Nikkei 225 Index fell 1% to around 64,300 on Tuesday, nearing a one-month low as worries over AI-related investment and rising borrowing costs continued to pressure technology shares. Japanese stocks also lagged Wall Street’s overnight rebound—driven largely by US chipmakers—as domestic firms remain especially exposed to AI-driven selloffs.
Notable laggards included Kioxia Holdings (-2.9%), SoftBank Group (-4.8%), Taiyo Yuden (-3.4%), Fujikura (-4.2%), and Tokyo Electron (-1.7%). Financials also weakened, with Mitsubishi UFJ down 1.5%, Mizuho Financial off 2.8%, and Sumitomo Mitsui slipping 1.6%.
On the policy front, Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda stated that underlying inflation is already approaching the central bank’s 2% target, reinforcing expectations of a potentially tighter monetary stance. Investors are now looking ahead to upcoming trade and inflation data for further signals on Japan’s economic outlook.
