Japan’s Nikkei Ends at 3-week Low as Chip-Related Stocks Decline

Reuters

16:55 JST, July 22, 2024

TOKYO, July 22 (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei share average ended at a three-week low on Monday, extending its decline to a fourth session, as chip-related stocks tumbled after their Wall Street peers closed sharply lower in the previous session.

The Nikkei fell 1.16% to 39,599, its lowest close since June 28 in its longest losing streak since October last year.

The broader Topix was down 1.16% to 2,827.53.

The Japanese market was a reflection of all the bad cues overseas over the weekend, said Takehiko Masuzawa, trading head of Phillip Securities Japan.

Chip-equipment maker Tokyo Electron fell 2.57% to drag the Nikkei the most. Chip-testing equipment maker Advantest lost 3.53% and silicon-wafer maker Shin-Etsu Chemical slipped 2.15%.

U.S. stocks extended their slump on Friday as lingering chaos related to a global technical outage caused by a software glitch added uncertainty to an already-anxious market.

Nvidia shares led a sell-off in chips-related stocks, with the Philadelphia SE Semiconductor index underperforming the broader market with a more than 3% drop.

Heavy industry maker IHI fell 3.86% as investors sold stocks that had rallied on higher chances of Donald Trump winning the U.S. presidential race spurred so-called “Trump trades.”

U.S. President Joe Biden ending his reelection campaign triggered a sell-off of those stocks as market players tried to book profits, Masuzawa said.

Biden abandoned his reelection bid on Sunday under growing pressure from his fellow Democrats and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris as the party’s candidate to face Republican Donald Trump in the November election.

All but four of the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s 33 industry sub-indexes fell. Railway firms rose 1.22%, while the airline sector inched up 0.41%.

Of the Nikkei’s 225 constituents, 170 fell and 52 advanced with 3 trading flat.