Japan Market Daily | Kabutaro & Friends

On May 28, 2026, the Nikkei 225 snapped its upward momentum, closing down 306 yen at 64,693 yen. Although the Dow Jones reached a fresh record high on Wall Street the previous day on the back of falling energy costs, the Tokyo market faced profit-taking driven by short-term overheating concerns and a slowdown in AI and semiconductor shares. In the FX market, the USD/JPY pair edged higher ahead of key U.S. economic data, trading in the mid-159 range. In commodity markets, WTI crude oil futures briefly sank to the 87-dollar level per barrel, hitting a one-month low, after Iran disclosed partial details regarding a draft memorandum with the U.S. aimed at normalizing maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, in Brussels, the European Policy Centre announced its upcoming Economic Security Forum to address heightening supply chain and cost-of-living pressures stemming from the geopolitical conflict.