Japan Market Daily | Kabutaro & Friends

On July 22, 2026, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 edged down 116.59 points (-0.18%) to close at 66,115.60, while the TOPIX rose 18.18 points to 4,033.13. Early buying in AI and semiconductor stocks, following the previous day's gains in US chip shares and reports of a TSMC price increase, briefly pushed the index up more than 1,300 points to an intraday high of 67,592.20. However, caution ahead of major US tech earnings starting on the 23rd led to profit-taking in the afternoon, and the index fell to an intraday low of 65,955.60. USD/JPY traded in the low-163 range, standing at 163.01-163.03 at 5pm, up 0.42 yen from the previous day. Safe-haven dollar buying prevailed amid fears of escalating US-Iran military conflict, and the yen briefly touched 163.24 per dollar in New York trading on the 21st, its weakest level in about 39 years and 7 months since December 1986. Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said the government would respond appropriately, including through currency intervention, if necessary.