Japan’s Nikkei Stock Average Slumps as Yen Rallies, Machine Orders Fall; Greenland Woes Weigh

Reuters

12:41 JST, January 19, 2026

TOKYO, Jan 19 (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei share average slid for a third-straight day on Monday as geopolitical tensions over Greenland sparked a safe-haven rally in the yen, while economic data surprised on the downside.

The benchmark Nikkei 225 Index .N225 fell 1.4% to 53,159.31 in early trading. The broader Topix .TOPX slid 1% to 3,623.48.

The yen rallied to its strongest level since January 9 on a weaker dollar following U.S. President Donald Trump’s latest tariff threats against Europe. Data on Japanese machinery orders in November showed an 11% month-on-month decline, more than double what economists had forecast in a Reuters poll.

“Semiconductor-related stocks, which had been driving the recent rise in Japanese equities, and auto shares that had benefited from the weak yen are seeing significant declines today,” said Wataru Akiyama, an equities strategist at Nomura Securities. “The sharp drop in machinery orders appears to be a factor in the stock market.”

Monday kicks off a pivotal week in Japanese markets, with fiscally dovish Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi dissolving parliament to set up a snap election while the central bank meets to set policy.

Japanese government bonds and the yen have fallen sharply of late on expectations that Takaichi may have greater leeway to introduce more stimulus pending the election expected early next month.

The dollar weakened, and global markets were shaken after Trump vowed to slap fresh tariffs on eight European nations until the U.S. is allowed to buy Greenland.

There were 51 advancers on the Nikkei index against 171 decliners. The largest losers were Sumitomo Pharma 4506.T, down 8.7%, followed by Sumitomo Chemical 4005.T, which lost 5.4%.

The largest gainers in the index were retailer Aeon 8267.T, up 5.4%, followed by food additive maker Ajinomoto 2802.T, which added 4.1%.