tokyo stocks slip: nikkei loses steam after rally

2025-05-15 general

tokyo, Thursday, 15 May 2025.
the nikkei average dipped for the second day, closing at 37,755.51 yen, a 0.98% decrease. profit-taking after a month-long recovery drove the decline. a stronger yen and overseas investors selling stock index futures added pressure. the decline temporarily neared 500 yen. speculation arose that the us may push japan to correct the high dollar after us-south korea discussions on the won. this led to selling of auto stocks like toyota and honda amid concerns about export profitability.

market overview

The tokyo stock price index (topix) also declined, closing at 2,738.96, a 0.88 or 0.88% decrease [1]. The jpx prime 150 index similarly fell, ending at 1,209.09, also down 0.88%, or 10.77 points [1]. Trading volume on the tokyo stock exchange (tse) prime market reached approximately 4.7778 trillion yen, with 2.02594 billion shares traded [1]. Declining issues on the tse prime outnumbered advancers, with 1,098 stocks falling compared to 489 rising and 46 remaining unchanged [1].

analyst perspectives

Katsunobu Kato, the finance minister, is considering a meeting with US Treasury Secretary Bessent in Canada next week [1]. According to Mutsumi Kagawa, a senior market analyst at Marin Strategies, the market anticipates that the meeting will simply reaffirm the understanding that ‘exchange rate movements are determined by the market’ [1]. Kagawa added that this is likely an excuse for profit-taking, given the recent overheating of japanese stocks [1].

stock performance

Notable stocks such as fast retailing and softbank group (sbg) experienced selling pressure, while sony group and nintendo also saw declines [1]. Conversely, skylark, which announced its earnings in the morning, surged [1]. Retail stocks like aeon, ryohin keikaku (muji), and seven & i holdings also saw gains [1]. Toyota temporarily fell by 3.72% due to concerns about export profitability amid a stronger yen [6].

broader market context

The nikkei’s downturn reflects a broader trend of profit-taking after a period of consistent gains [1][2]. Investors are reacting to a slightly stronger yen and selling pressure from overseas investors in stock index futures [1]. The market’s initial recovery attempt has seemingly run out of steam, prompting investors to reassess their positions [7]. Despite the day’s losses, underlying sentiment suggests continued buying interest on dips, preventing a steeper decline [1].

Bronnen

nikkei average market correction