Some AI-related US stocks are undergoing a correction, prompting views that funds are shifting to defensive stocks such as consumer staples. In Japan, some stocks with strong earnings were sold, while buying of AI-related stocks by overseas short-term investors was observed.
In the US market, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rebounded by $51 from the previous day’s close on 8 October and rose sharply again on 9 October. Semiconductor-related stocks, however, generally declined, and selling of AI-related stocks weighed on the market. Long-term interest-rate movements and uncertainty over the situation in the Middle East became key market inflection points.
Funds were reported to be shifting from AI-related stocks to defensive stocks such as consumer staples, affecting the performance of stocks ahead of next week’s earnings announcements. Caution toward companies due to report and investors’ tendency to diversify coexisted.
In the Japanese market, many stocks were sold despite strong performers, while overseas short-term investors were observed buying AI-related stocks. The Nikkei 225 fell sharply at one point, but buying to cover positions emerged toward the afternoon session, leaving stock movements on the Prime Market chaotic.
AI and semiconductor stocks made a large contribution to the Nikkei 225’s decline, with falls in AI- and semiconductor-related stocks contributing to the index’s drop on 8 October. On 9 October, overseas short-term investors’ futures buying spread across a broad range of stocks, and the market showed some resilience.