The Nikkei average staged a sharp rebound, ending the morning session at ¥66,318.81, up ¥837.54 from the previous day, on estimated volume of 925.23 million shares. Buying led from the open against the backdrop of movements in U.S. markets and changing conditions in the Middle East.
The Nikkei average staged a sharp rebound, ending the morning session at ¥66,318.81, up ¥837.54 from the previous day, with estimated volume of 925.23 million shares. Buying led after the open, with semiconductor-related, electric-wire and nonferrous-metal stocks among those bought, and the Nikkei briefly recovering to the ¥66,000 range and trading in positive territory.
U.S. stocks continued their decline from the previous session, with the Dow ending down $131.59 and the Nasdaq down 22.84 points. The restoration of half of Saudi Arabia's major pipeline provided reassurance through lower oil prices, although the factor of rising long-term yields remained a drag on the market.
Among individual stocks, SoftBank Group, Tokyo Electron, Advantest, Fast Retailing, Fujikura and Shin-Etsu Chemical rose, while Ibiden, Murata Manufacturing, Kyocera, Recruit Holdings and Nitto Denko declined.
By sector, nonferrous metals, marine transportation and banks rose, while fishery, agriculture and forestry, services and land transportation declined. The afternoon session is expected to see consolidation near the highs, with the key focus on whether the market can clearly break above the 75-day moving average in the ¥66,000 range.