Japan Market Daily | Kabutaro & Friends

On July 24, 2026, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 fell for the day, closing down 1,811.45 points (-2.7%) at 64,611.15, with the TOPIX at 4,011.31. In the previous session on the 23rd, the Dow had fallen 506.93 points to 51,711.65 and the Nasdaq Composite dropped 553.20 points to 25,137.70, weighed down by renewed concerns over excessive AI investment following earnings from Alphabet and Tesla, rising oil prices after President Trump's warning of a large-scale attack on Iran, and growing expectations of a Fed rate hike this year on strong jobs data. This carried over into Tokyo trading, where selling spread across semiconductor and AI-related stocks such as Tokyo Electron and Ibiden, with Tokyo Electron alone dragging the index down by about 448 points. USD/JPY traded in the high-163 range, standing at 163.76-163.78 at 5pm, having briefly risen to 163.88 in New York trading. Finance Minister Katayama said the government would take resolute action if necessary.