The Nikkei stood at ¥63,095.11 at the morning close, down ¥195, with a sharp drop in major semiconductor company Kioxia weighing on the market. The decline temporarily widened to nearly ¥600 in morning trading, but buying emerged in some semiconductor stocks in the afternoon session, narrowing the loss.
In the Tokyo market on Monday, the Nikkei continued to fall, ending the morning session at ¥63,095.11, down ¥195.00 from the previous weekend. TOPIX ended morning trading at 3,931.61, down 33.46 points.
The main cause of the selling was a sharp drop in Kioxia Holdings. The consolidated net profit forecast the company announced for the April-December 2026 period was substantially below market expectations. Although it indicated a forecast for a substantial increase in profit to ¥3.5578 trillion, approximately 24 times higher than in the same period a year earlier, it fell short of expectations. This prompted selling in Kioxia-related stocks, temporarily bringing the Nikkei's decline close to ¥600.
Trading in the morning was marked by a lack of direction as buying and selling crossed, with continued declines alternating with periods of buying back. Nevertheless, some semiconductor stocks that reported strong earnings attracted buying, narrowing the indexes' losses.
The market's reaction to Kioxia's earnings outlook once again highlighted the size of its contribution to the indexes. Some observers believe the market will continue to scrutinize the announcement and that directionless trading will persist.