The 225-issue Nikkei stock average temporarily plunged over 4,100 points Friday afternoon due to selling of issues related to semiconductors and artificial intelligence following overnight falls in their U.S. counterparts.
At 1:41 p.m., the index of 225 major issues listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange¡¯s Prime section stood at 62,704.60, down 4,130.94 points, or 6.18%, from Thursday¡¯s closing. It slipped below 63,000 for the first time in about a month on an intraday basis.
In the Tokyo market, memory chipmaker Kioxia Holdings and other key Nikkei component issues came under selling pressure.
¡°We can¡¯t help thinking that the boom in generative AI-related stocks is about to end,¡± an official of a bank-affiliated securities firm said.
¡°There was selling to lock in profits ahead of upcoming earnings reports in the United States and Japan,¡± a market source said.
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