Tokyo stocks rose as high as ¥65,404.63 in the morning, but struggled to advance ahead of the ¥65,000 threshold and ended the morning session up approximately ¥748 from the previous day. Strong earnings from U.S. AI-related companies and SpaceX's results lifted the market.
In the Tokyo stock market on the morning of the 21st, the Nikkei average ended the morning session at ¥64,823.55, up ¥748.13 from the previous day, while AI- and semiconductor-related stocks surged in off-hours trading on favorable developments in U.S. equities.
U.S. SpaceX's results exceeded market expectations for revenue and other items, and the company's move into the black, supported by growth in its AI business, lifted the market and broadened buying in semiconductor stocks. Advantest and Tokyo Electron, two leading semiconductor-related names, also performed firmly.
Most sectors rose, and the TOPIX ended the morning session up 43.99 points at 4,053.20. Trading value was approximately ¥3.4323 trillion, with 1,075 advancers, 414 decliners and 62 unchanged issues.
On the macroeconomic front, the trade deficit continued, while semiconductor-related exports remained firm. Some market participants said they wanted to assess the details of corporate earnings and the sustainability of AI demand. The morning session was also influenced by moves in South Korea's KOSPI, while the latter half of the session was characterized by waiting for earnings releases to gather pace.