The Nikkei 225 Index inched up 0.06% on Thursday to close at 64,217, rebounding after having fallen as much as 2.87% earlier in the session. Sentiment improved following news that the US military had completed its latest strikes on Iran, raising hopes that peace negotiations might resume.
Technology shares, however, remained under pressure amid persistent concerns about stretched AI-related valuations, which continued to weigh on Japanese firms heavily exposed to the global AI boom. On the domestic front, the Bank of Japan is widely expected to raise interest rates next week as policymakers confront surging energy costs tied to the Middle East conflict.
In corporate moves, Kioxia Holdings (+7%), Taiyo Yuden (+6.2%), and Murata Manufacturing (+3.7%) recorded solid gains, while SoftBank Group (-1.4%), Fujikura (-1.2%), and Toyota Motor (-2.4%) finished notably lower.
