Japanese Shares Rise on Tech Rebound

The Nikkei 225 Index jumped 2% to above 68,000 while the broader Topix Index gained 0.4% to 4,022 on Thursday, as Japanese equities snapped a two-day losing streak on the back of a rebound in technology stocks. Domestic shares also took cues from gains in US chipmakers and memory-related stocks overnight. Market sentiment was further supported by reports that South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix’s US listing was more than seven times oversubscribed, highlighting strong investor demand for artificial intelligence infrastructure. Meanwhile, US private equity firm Bain Capital sold its entire stake in Japanese flash memory producer Kioxia Holdings, although the company’s shares surged more than 7% during the session. Among other major technology gainers, Murata Manufacturing climbed 4%, Advantest advanced 6.9%, Tokyo Electron rose 4%, and Fujikura gained 5.1%.

The Nikkei 225 Index fell 786 points or 1.15 percent on Wednesday to close at 67471 points. Leading the losses are Taiyo Yuden (-8.22%), Mitsui Mining & Smelting (-5.79%) and Taisei (-5.41%).

The Nikkei 225 Index dropped 2.11% to close at 66,819, while the broader Topix Index declined 1.37% to 4,006 on Wednesday, extending losses from the previous session as Japanese equities tracked an overnight selloff on Wall Street led by renewed weakness in semiconductor stocks. Reports that China's DeepSeek is developing its own AI chip also weighed on technology shares. Investors further reacted to escalating tensions in the Middle East and soaring oil prices after the US launched fresh air strikes on Iran following recent attacks on ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz. Chip and AI-related stocks led the decline, with sharp losses from Taiyo Yuden (-8.5%), Tokyo Electron (-3.1%), Advantest (-4.7%), Fujikura (-4.9%) and Ibiden Co (-4%). Heavyweight consumer and industrial stocks also slumped, including Fast Retailing (-0.9%), Toyota Motor (-1.9%) and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (-4.7%).