SoftBank rises 10%, pushing the Nikkei 225 to a record

Nikkei Futures Live

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 achieved a record high of 44,396.95 on Thursday, reflecting the upward momentum, driven by optimism surrounding potential Fed-rate cuts and favorable inflation data. SoftBank Group, a significant player in the Nikkei 255, surged over 10%, achieving gains for the second consecutive day. A report indicates that OpenAI has entered into a cloud-computing agreement with Oracle valued at approximately $300 billion over five years, according to sources familiar with the situation.

Oracle shares experienced a remarkable increase of 35.95% on Wednesday in the U.S. market following the company’s astonishing cloud demand figures. Oracle has projected $18 billion in cloud infrastructure revenue for fiscal 2026, with expectations for the annual total to escalate to $32 billion, $73 billion, $114 billion, and ultimately $144 billion over the following four years. “Expect a nice bump higher for Softbank… as investors connected the dots between this and Oracle’s relationship, when only months ago Masayoshi Son and Larry Ellison stood together as Trump announced the Stargate program,” stated Andrew Jackson. SoftBank’s connection to Oracle originates from their collaborative involvement in the prominent Stargate program, a $500 billion U.S. initiative unveiled in January by U.S. President Donald Trump, together with OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Oracle’s Larry Ellison, and SoftBank founder Masayoshi Son. Energy and utilities stocks were the primary contributors to the gains observed on the Nikkei 225.

  • The Topix index shifted direction to increase by 0.2%.
  • South Korea’s Kospi increased by 0.65%, while the small-cap Kosdaq rose by 0.39%.
  • In Australia, the ASX/S&P 200 experienced a decline of 0.44%.
  • The Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong experienced a decline of 0.29%, whereas the Hang Seng Tech index remained unchanged.
  • The mainland’s CSI 300 shifted direction to increase by 1.77%.

In early trading, India’s benchmark Nifty 50 showed little movement, remaining flat, whereas the Sensex index experienced a modest increase of 0.15%. U.S. equity futures showed minimal movement during early Asian trading hours, as Wall Street prepared for an important consumer inflation indicator for August, scheduled for release on Thursday morning in the U.S. Overnight in the U.S., the majority of key benchmarks experienced an increase, reaching new record closing highs following the release of the latest producer price index data, which indicated a cooling in inflation. The S&P 500 concluded the trading session with a gain of 0.3%, reaching a record closing value of 6,532.04. The index reached a peak of 6,555.97, reflecting an increase of approximately 0.7%, thereby achieving a new all-time intraday high.

The Nasdaq Composite increased by 0.03%, concluding at 21,886.06, similarly achieving a closing high after reaching an all-time intraday peak prior to its afternoon decline. The Dow Jones Industrial Average decreased by 220.42 points, representing a 0.48% drop, closing at 45,490.92. This decline was primarily influenced by a downturn in Apple shares, as the recent iPhone announcement did not meet investor expectations.