Following the unveiling of a new handheld device by Meta Platforms, rising bond yields exerted pressure on financial shares, as reported. The Nikkei increased by 1.33% to 65,883.41 at the midday break, whereas the broader Topix saw a modest rise of 0.12% to 4,096.01. Japanese markets were closed until Wednesday because of public holidays, resulting in Thursday being the first complete trading session of the holiday-shortened week. Ibiden surged 15.47% following the announcement by Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg of Meta Charm, a handheld device intended to utilise the company’s new Muse artificial intelligence assistant. The announcement stimulated demand for firms associated with CPU and semiconductor components, as reported.
Socionext, Meiko Electronics, and Ushio Inc each experienced gains exceeding 10%, positioning them, alongside Ibiden, among the four largest gainers on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Prime Market. According to source, the rally in CPU-related shares indicated investor enthusiasm regarding potential demand for components associated with Meta’s new device. Chip-testing equipment manufacturer Advantest experienced an increase of 4.09%, contributing significantly to the rise of the Nikkei. Meanwhile, SoftBank Group saw a modest gain of 0.52%. The increase in technology stocks occurred notwithstanding an uptick in Japanese government bond yields. The 10-year government bond yield rose to 3.055%, marking its peak since August 1996, in the wake of a selloff in U.S. Treasuries.
Investors were assessing the resurgence of inflation worries as the yen depreciated against the dollar overnight, according to source. Higher yields exerted pressure on bank stocks, contributing to a decline in the Topix. Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group decreased by 1.08%, Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group saw a decline of 1.60%, and Mizuho Financial Group experienced a slip of 2.02%. The TSE’s value share index experienced a decline of 0.2%, in contrast, the growth stock index saw an increase of 0.48%. Among over 1,500 stocks traded on the TSE’s Prime Market, 53% experienced an advance, 43% saw a decline, and 3% remained unchanged.
