Japan’s Nikkei share average climbed past 67,000 on Monday, pushed higher by AI-focused equities and a sharp rally in SoftBank Group that lifted the benchmark to fresh intraday highs.
The Nikkei rose 1.1% to 67,038.24 at the midday recess after reaching a peak of 67,231.28 earlier in the session. The index’s advance was concentrated, with SoftBank accounting for a sizeable portion of the move - the group jumped 10.3% and added roughly 618 points to the Nikkei’s total 709-point gain.
SoftBank’s market value expanded to about 47.2 trillion yen ($296.0 billion) while Toyota Motor’s market capitalisation contracted to around 45.7 trillion yen after the carmaker’s shares slid 4.8% on Monday.
Over the weekend, SoftBank pledged some 75 billion euros ($87.3 billion) over five years to strengthen AI infrastructure in France, a commitment that helped fuel investor enthusiasm for the company and related technology names.
The rally in AI-related stocks contrasted with weakness elsewhere on the Tokyo exchange. The broader Topix fell 0.2%, underlining a divergence between the tech-led gains on the Nikkei and more muted performance across the market.
Both the Nikkei and Topix had reached record highs on Friday amid optimism about a near-term peace deal in the Middle East, but the new week opened with Washington and Tehran still appearing to differ on significant issues, leaving some geopolitical uncertainty intact.
Nomura Securities strategist Maki Sawada said investor interest is spreading to AI-related names that had been lagging, reflecting expectations of growing demand for AI servers. She cited electronic component maker Murata Manufacturing as an example of a slow-moving AI-related stock that saw strong buying interest.
Murata surged 14.1% and was the Nikkei’s largest percentage gainer for the day.
At the same time, Sawada warned that concerns about overvaluation remain entrenched, especially given elevated uncertainty related to the Middle East. That caution was reflected in market breadth and sector moves.
Across the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s 33 industry groups, only eight advanced, led by a 4.3% gain in IT firms. Auto names were among the weakest performers, with the sector down 4.2% overall. Within the Nikkei 225, 73 of the 225 components posted gains while 152 declined.
Not all chip-related names participated in the rally. Advantest retreated 2.2% and Fujikura fell 3.6%. On the auto side, Mitsubishi Motors was the largest percentage decliner, tumbling 9.1%, and alliance partner Nissan declined 7.2%.
Currency conversion notes provided with the market data showed ($1 = 159.4700 yen) and ($1 = 0.8588 euros).
The session illustrated a market in which concentrated strength in AI and related technology names can push headline indices higher even as much of the market remains under pressure. Investors will likely watch whether the narrow leadership broadens out or if concerns about valuations and geopolitical risks reassert themselves.