日経平均が一時最高値、半導体株が押し上げ

Japan's Nikkei Stock Average renewed its all-time intraday high on May 27 during Tokyo trading. Reuters reported that gains in semiconductor-related shares pushed the market upward.

At one point the Nikkei rose to 66,428.81, up 2.2% from the previous day. It later gave back part of the gain, but trading remained active on the Tokyo Stock Exchange.

The report said Tokyo Electron and Advantest rose and made large contributions to the index. Buying was described as being driven by expectations for AI-related semiconductor demand.

Nvidia's record close in the United States the night before was also seen as supporting sentiment in Tokyo. Expectations for global AI investment appeared to spill over into Japanese shares as well.

Not every stock moved in the same direction, however. Reuters said weakness was also seen in financial and other value shares, meaning the rise was supported mainly by semiconductor names.

Japanese equities have been bought this year on expectations for corporate reform, a weaker yen and AI-related stock selection. This new record suggested that trend is still continuing.

At the same time, the move again showed how easily the Nikkei can be swayed by a small number of large stocks. The index is especially affected by high-priced components.

Profit-taking emerged in the afternoon, causing the index to pull back from its high. Even so, the fact that there was enough morning demand to reach a fresh record showed strong investor appetite.

According to the report, gainers and decliners on the Prime Market were nearly even. That suggests the move was less a broad market surge than concentrated buying in specific sectors.

From here, whether funds continue flowing into AI-linked shares is likely to influence the direction of Japanese equities. U.S. semiconductor stocks and domestic earnings outlooks may provide the next clues.