FX.co ★ Japanese Shares Pull Back from Record Highs

The Nikkei 225 index declined by 0.4% to approximately 52,200, while the broader Topix index fell by 0.5% to 3,315 on Tuesday. Both indexes retreated from their recent record highs, reflecting investor caution following the extended weekend. Japanese stocks underperformed compared to Wall Street, where optimism driven by advances in artificial intelligence re-emerged in light of Amazon's $38 billion agreement with OpenAI. This led to profit-taking in major stocks including SoftBank Group (-1.9%), Advantest (-4%), Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (-1.5%), Hitachi (-1.3%), and Mitsubishi UFJ (-1%). Investors are now focused on upcoming key domestic economic data, particularly the September wage and household spending figures, to assess the economic outlook. Additionally, the Bank of Japan is set to release the minutes from its September meeting, with market participants closely monitoring for any indications of a possible interest rate hike in December.