Japan’s Nikkei hits record high as chip-related shares jump

The Nikkei (.N225), opens new tab ‌was up 1.25% at 65,811.78, as of 0147 GMT, after rising as much as 2.2% earlier in the day to hit a record intraday high of 66,428.81. The broader Topix (.TOPX), opens new tab edged 0.15% higher to 3,944.19.

“Investor money is concentrated on high-flying chip-related shares. Value shares are ⁠left out as there is no need to buy them when technology shares are giving solid returns,” said Kazuaki Shimada, chief strategist at IwaiCosmo Securities.

“The market mirrored the U.S. performance overnight, where semiconductor stocks led the rise and the Dow fell.”

The S&P 500 and Nasdaq hit record closing highs on Tuesday, as AI-fuelled optimism offset anxiety over Middle East peace talks — concerns that were compounded by recent U.S. strikes on Iran. The ‌Dow ⁠Jones Industrial Average (.DJI), opens new tab fell 0.23%.

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In Japan, chip-making equipment maker Tokyo Electron (8035.T), opens new tab and chip-testing equipment maker Advantest (6857.T), opens new tab rose more than 5% each.
Bucking the trend, SoftBank Group (9984.T), opens new tab slipped 4.3%. Chip designer Socionext (6526.T), opens new tab fell 5.8% to become the worst percentage loser on the Nikkei.”Even ⁠within the AI-theme stocks, investors are rotating their targets,” said Shuutarou Yasuda, a market analyst at Tokai Tokyo Intelligence Laboratory.
Bank shares fell, with Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (8306.T), opens new tab ⁠and Mizuho Financial Group (8411.T), opens new tab slipping 0.49% and 0.95%, respectively.

The Topix’s bank index (.IBNKS.T), opens new tab declined 0.76%. The real estate index (.IRLTY.T), opens new tab lost 1.48% to become the ⁠worst performer among the 33 industry sub-indexes.

Of the nearly 1,600 stocks trading on the Tokyo Stock Exchange‘s prime market, 44% rose, 52% fell, and 3% traded flat.