Japanese shares fall as investors book profits from rally

Business Recorder reported that Japanese equities slipped on Wednesday, with artificial intelligence-linked shares leading the retreat as traders moved to lock in gains from a recent surge. By midday, the Nikkei had shed 0.86% to 70,074.13, while the broader Topix declined 0.59% to 4,158.89. The benchmark had moved above 70,000 earlier this week, a level it had not reached in three months, and has climbed nearly 5% this month.

Chip-related names weighed on the index, with memory maker Kioxia down 4.06% and Tokyo Electron lower by 2.81%. Taka Ikeda of GSCI Asset Management said institutional investors typically sell at the start of the fiscal half to realise profits, a move he described as visible after the recent strong run. Kirin Holdings dropped 2.31% after a report that the Fair Trade Commission had raided four major beer makers over suspected anti-monopoly violations. Breadth was weak, with 67% of more than 1,500 prime-market stocks falling against 29% rising.

US shares closed higher overnight as crude oil steadied and Treasury yields eased, but Ikeda said those gains were not strong enough to lift Tokyo. Nasdaq futures were 0.15% lower in Asian trade, and attention is moving toward the third-quarter earnings season. SoftBank Group rose 0.38% against the trend, while Fast Retailing gained 0.2%.