The Nikkei average continued to rise for 4 business days. It closed the morning session at 40,232.45 yen, an increase of 626.65 yen compared to the previous business day (+1.58%) (with a volume of approximately 804 million 40 million shares).
The U.S. stock market continued to rise on the 14th. The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed at 43,065.22, up 201.36 points, while the Nasdaq closed at 18,502.69, up 159.75 points. Following a slight decline in anticipation of interest rate cuts and increased fiscal policies by the Chinese government to stimulate demand, buy and sell orders intersected at the opening, causing mixed trading. Expectations for earnings reports from major companies then boosted the market, leading to an increase. Furthermore, the rise of semiconductor company Nvidia pushed up the Nasdaq, expanding gains towards the end. The Dow reached a new record high for consecutive days.
Based on the strength in U.S. stocks and a weakening yen, the Tokyo market opened with a buying preference after the three-day weekend. The Nikkei average regained the 40,000 yen level for the first time since July 19th at the start of trading. Boosted by Nvidia's rise, semiconductor stocks such as Advantest <6857>, SoftBank Group <9984>, and Tokyo Electron <8035> pushed the Nikkei average higher. While bank stocks also rose, the price-to-earnings ratio expanded to the high 14x range, indicating a favorable environment for the Nikkei average.
Among the Nikkei average constituents, semiconductor stocks saw noticeable increases, including Advantest, SoftBank Group, Tokyo Electron, Screen Holdings <7735>, Socionext <6526>, Laser Tech <6920>, and Renesas Electronics <6723>, benefiting from the rise in U.S. high-tech stocks. Additionally, banking stocks such as Concordia <7186>, Shizuoka FG <5831>, Resona Holdings <8308>, and Fukuoka Financial Group <8354> were bought following the rise in U.S. banking stocks. Other companies such as Chugai Pharmaceutical <4519>, Ebara Corporation <6361>, and Taiyo Yuden <6976> also experienced gains.
On the other hand, following a drop in crude oil prices, declines were notable in ENEOS Holdings <5020>, INPEX <1605>, Idemitsu Kosan <5019> among other oil-related stocks. Additionally, Nippon Steel <5401>, Kawasaki Heavy Industries <7012>, Toray Industries <3402>, and Fujikura <5803> also experienced declines.
In terms of industries, insurance, banking, electric appliances, information and communications, and service industries saw increases, while petroleum and coal products, mining, iron & steel, electric and gas utilities, and textiles & apparels experienced declines.
The afternoon session in the Tokyo market is expected to be influenced by trends in the Asian markets. While the lunchtime Hang Seng Index and Shanghai Composite Index are slightly negative, a turnaround may be expected, with stocks related to China such as Fanuc <6954> and Shiseido <4911> showing movement. Expectations for an afternoon rally grew as the Nikkei average retraced to the 40,200 yen level before the midday break. Attention will be focused on the movement of Asian stocks.