Japanese Stocks Fall Amid Risk-Off Movement
Japanese stocks weakened at the close of trading on Friday (February 20th), as market participants shifted to risk-off mode after escalating US-Iran tensions dampened appetite for riskier assets. The Nikkei 225 fell 1.12% to 56,826, while the Topix index fell 1.13% to 3,808, snapping a two-day rally.
Market sentiment worsened after US President Donald Trump said Iran had a maximum of 15 days to reach a deal on its nuclear program or face consequences. Investors also tended to hold positions ahead of the release of key US economic data that could potentially change expectations about the direction of the Fed's interest rate policy.
Domestically, data showed that Japanese inflation—both headline and core—slowed in January. This reflects the government's efforts to mitigate pressures on the cost of living, although the market remains sensitive to the direction of global risks.
The sell-off was led by technology and banking stocks. Several major issuers recorded declines, including Kioxia (-3.3%), Advantest (-2%), Tokyo Electron (-1.5%), and shares of banks Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (-2.2%) and Mizuho Financial Group (-1.8%).
On the corporate side, Sumitomo Pharma plunged 15.6%, allegedly due to profit-taking after the company received conditional approval for its regenerative therapy. Despite Friday's sharp declines, both benchmark indexes are still on track to close the week relatively flat overall.
Source: Newsmaker.id
