Overview
- The Nikkei finished down 165.28 yen at 48,537.70, marking a fourth straight decline after intraday gains were reversed.
- An early rally that lifted the morning close to 49,077.49 was driven by buybacks following a drop of more than 1,600 yen the previous day and support for exporters from a weaker yen.
- Weakness in U.S. technology stocks spilled into Tokyo and pressure on semiconductor names weighed on the broader market.
- Japanese government bond yields climbed, with the 10-year hitting 1.775% intraday and closing at 1.765%, the highest levels since 2008, while the yen traded in the mid-155s and briefly touched 156 per dollar.
- BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda met Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama and the economy minister to reaffirm close coordination as markets stayed volatile, with fiscal concerns rising on reports of an economic package exceeding 20 trillion yen and a roughly 17 trillion yen supplementary budget.