The Nikkei 225 fell by more than ¥4,300 at one point, closing the morning at ¥57,858.61. Expectations that AI investment would slow following the Democratic Party's landslide victory spread, and the sharp decline in US markets spilled over into Japan.
In morning trading on the Tokyo Stock Exchange on the 6th, the Nikkei 225 fell by more than ¥4,300 at one point and closed the morning at ¥57,858.61, down ¥3,219.29 from the previous day. Declines in AI- and semiconductor-related stocks, which have a significant estimated contribution to the Nikkei's movements, stood out, and selling prevailed overall. As a result, the Nikkei fell below ¥60,000 for the first time in about five and a half months.
In New York, the Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at $51,523.06, down $1,833.06, with every component stock, including education stocks, declining. The Nasdaq Composite fell 1,421.51 points to 24,315.00, its largest decline on record.
Against the backdrop of the Democratic Party's landslide victory in the US midterm elections on the 5th, concerns grew over tighter regulations on the construction of data centers for AI, and the downtrend in US markets continued. In Texas in the southern United States, a policy was announced to suspend permits for new data center construction, while a series of local referendums produced results supporting tighter regulation.
Investor anxiety spread worldwide, with South Korea's Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) and Taiwan's TAIEX also extending their declines. Market participants see growing uncertainty over political governance, including in the United States, and point to the possibility of further instability.