Tokyo market summary: Nikkei average down 509 yen, Laser Tech plunges about 8%, ASML announces earnings, below market expectations

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The Bank of Japan (BOJ) will pay attention to the impact of exchange rates and the possibility of further rate hikes in its September meeting, according to ex-BOJ board member Komonaga Motoji.
Mizuho Research & Technologies Executive Economist and former BOJ board member Kazuo Monma believes that the BOJ may take further rate hikes at its September monetary policy meeting, taking into account the recovery of weak consumer spending. Monma cites service prices from April to June as the most critical indicators for assessing the BOJ's monetary policy operation and is paying attention to whether this year's wage increases are reflected in them. If confirmed, he said that there may be a rate hike in July, and as a main scenario, he expects the policy interest rate to be raised to 0.25% at the September meeting, where the individual consumption from April to June can be confirmed in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The "fantasy" of international coordination to correct the weak yen: There are significant differences among countries and regions in the strength of their currencies against the dollar.
While the weakening yen and strengthening dollar continue in the foreign exchange market, the G20 finance ministers and central bank governors meeting will begin in Washington, D.C. from the 17th to the 20th (local time). Although Japan intends to put a brake on the depreciation of the yen, there are significant differences among countries and regions in the exchange rate against the dollar. The transition from a situation where the yen is clearly weakening is not straightforward.
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Following Eneos, Iwatani will also significantly raise the price of hydrogen for fuel cell vehicles (FCVs), sending a chilling message to the promotion of FCV adoption.
There is a growing trend of significantly increasing the price of hydrogen, the fuel for fuel cell vehicles (FCVs), domestically. While the government and automakers are expanding the use of hydrogen for decarbonization, the higher cost of fuel efficiency compared to hybrid vehicles (HVs) using internal combustion engines could hinder widespread adoption.

Top-performing stocks with enhanced shareholder returns among companies whose stock prices rose in the February reporting period.
The full-year earnings reports of companies for the February reporting period have been released. There were several stocks that experienced significant price fluctuations following the release of their earnings reports. When ranking the stock price appreciation rates from December 2023 to the present for companies reporting February earnings, semiconductors and supermarkets ranked high. Notably, there were many stocks that announced enhanced shareholder returns.

Hot stocks
Advantest - selling pressure. Clues for this include the earnings report of ASML, a Dutch company, released at 14:00 GMT on the 17th. Both the 1Q revenue and 2Q outlook fell below market expectations. In response, there was selling pressure on the corner of the semiconductor industry that deals with advanced semiconductor mask defect inspection equipment.
$Advantest (6857.JP)$fell sharply. There is a clue that ASML, a Dutch company, announced its 1Q earnings at 14:00 JST on the 17th. Both the 1Q revenue and 2Q outlook fell below market expectations. As a result, there was selling pressure on the equipment for inspecting mask defects in advanced semiconductors. $Lasertec (6920.JP)$The company is experiencing a sharp decline, and the leading inspection equipment company is also seeing an expanded decline.
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Laser Tech drops approximately 8%, as ASML announces earnings reports that fall below market expectations.
Update - [Earnings Report] ASML, Q1 24 revenue falls below expectations at 5.29 billion euros.

Toyota's compact HV Lexus receives orders for more than 0.02 million units, accelerating production in Iwate.
$Toyota Motor (7203.JP)$The production of hybrid vehicles (HV) is being accelerated and reevaluated worldwide. The new model car "LBX", produced in a factory in Iwate Prefecture, is a small multi-purpose sports car (SUV) under the luxury car brand "Lexus", and orders have reached approximately 0.02 million units, exceeding sales plans in about 5 months. Lexus aims to attract new fans as an affordable "entry-level" option and capture strong demand for HVs.

Resonac reaches a five-year high in stock price, with net profit for the current fiscal year exceeding expectations.
$Resonac Holdings (4004.JP)$Gan Ltd. experiences a sharp rebound, reaching a five-year high of 4,000 yen, the highest since April 2019. On the 16th, it announced that the consolidated net profit for the fiscal year ending in December 2024 (the current fiscal year) is expected to be 25 billion yen in the black (compared to a 18.9 billion yen loss in the previous year). This exceeds the average market forecast of 12.9 billion yen in the black (as of the 3rd, based on 7 companies) by QUICK Consensus, and led to positive buying sentiment.

Shipping stocks are uniformly high, driven by the geopolitical risk resurgence in the Strait of Hormuz and the rise in the Baltic Index.
$Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (9107.JP)$Kawasaki Kisen was bought for a temporary time at 2,063 yen, and shipping stocks in general are attracting attention with steady price movements. $Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (9101.JP)$, $Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (9104.JP)$In the rise and fall of different industry sectors, "shipping" is leading with the highest increase rate among the 33 sectors. Amidst the escalating tensions in the Middle East due to Iran's retaliatory attack on Israel, the geopolitical risk in the Strait of Hormuz is being recognized, and expectations for a surge in container shipping rates are resurging.
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Kawasaki Heavy Industries - Sharp rebound, US securities upgrade due to higher probability of increased profitability.
$Kawasaki Heavy Industries (7012.JP)$Kawasaki Heavy Industries - Large rebound. Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities upgraded the investment rating from "underweight" to "equal weight" and raised the target stock price from 3,000 yen to 5,000 yen. It seems to be evaluating the increased profit composition ratio of ships expected to have high operational rates and robotics for the semiconductor industry, which is expected to be active. The projected operating profit for the fiscal year ending in March 2025 is expected to be raised from the previous 96 billion yen to 113 billion yen.