Key Points
- Nikkei 225 dropped 1.92%, hitting a one-month low, led by losses in the Retail, Banking, and Automobiles & Parts sectors.
- M3 Inc. (TYO:2413), Pacific Metals Co., Ltd. (TYO:5541), and Konica Minolta, Inc. (TYO:4902) were among the top performers.
- Advantest Corp. (TYO:6857), Fujitsu Ltd. (TYO:6702), and Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd. (TYO:5801) were among the worst performers.
- Declining stocks outpaced advancing ones, with 2,838 stocks falling, 842 gaining, and 201 remaining unchanged. The Nikkei Volatility Index rose by 11.77%.
Japan’s Nikkei 225 dropped 1.83% or 716.10 to 38,474.30 on Tuesday, reaching a new one-month low, as losses in the Retail, Banking, and Automobiles & Parts sectors weighed heavily on the market. Declining stocks outpaced advancing ones on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, with 2,838 stocks falling, 842 gaining, and 201 remaining unchanged.
M3 Inc. (TYO:2413) emerged as the best performer, rising 3.19% to close at 1,455.00, a gain of 45.00 JPY. Pacific Metals Co., Ltd. (TYO:5541) followed with a 2.97% increase to 1,524.00, climbing 44.00 JPY and marking a new 52-week high. Konica Minolta, Inc. (TYO:4902) also saw gains, advancing 2.71% to close at 645.00, up 17.00 JPY.
On the downside, Advantest Corp. (TYO:6857) led the decliners, plunging 9.21% to end at 9,424.00, a loss of 956.00 JPY. Fujitsu Ltd. (TYO:6702) fell 5.01% to 2,665.00, shedding 140.50 JPY, while Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd. (TYO:5801) dropped 4.95% to 6,900.00, losing 359.00 JPY by the close of trading.
In the commodities market, crude oil for March delivery declined 0.48% to $76.93 a barrel, while Brent oil dropped 0.60% to $80.52 a barrel. Gold futures for February rose 0.24%, climbing $6.36 to trade at $2,684.96 per troy ounce, reflecting investor movement toward safe-haven assets amid the broader market decline.
In currency markets, the USD/JPY pair fell 0.08% to 157.36, while EUR/JPY rose slightly by 0.09% to 161.46. The US Dollar Index Futures weakened, down 0.46% to 109.31, reflecting a softer dollar against major global currencies.
The Nikkei Volatility Index, which measures the implied volatility of options on the Nikkei 225, rose by 11.77% or 2.56 to 24.30. The market’s significant drop highlighted ongoing investor concerns, as heavy losses in key sectors overshadowed gains among top-performing stocks.
