Tokyo stocks traded sharply lower in the morning session as worsening Middle East tensions weighed on sentiment. The Nikkei 225 fell substantially from the previous day, while the TOPIX also remained weak. Trading was active, with about 62% of stocks declining.
At the morning close, the Nikkei 225 had fallen for a second straight session to ¥64,597.46, down ¥545.32 from the previous day, while the TOPIX stood at 4,032.89, down 13.75 points. Worsening tensions in the Middle East weighed on investor sentiment, prompting broad-based selling centered on semiconductor-related stocks with a large impact on the Nikkei 225, although buying on dips was also seen and narrowed the decline.
During the morning session, the Nikkei 225 at one point extended its decline to more than ¥800, and selling intensified in stocks with a large impact on the index as major semiconductor-related stocks, including Tokyo Electron, Kioxia HD and Advantest, turned lower. Declining stocks outnumbered advancing stocks across the market, and the TOPIX also remained weak.
The Nikkei 225 opened the morning session down ¥374.25 from the previous day at ¥64,768.53. Following the lead of U.S. stocks, which were sold amid worsening tensions in the Middle East, selling prevailed in the Tokyo market as well.