Nikkei Retreats from Record as Oil Spikes
Japanese stocks weakened on Monday (May 11), with the Nikkei 225 down 0.2% to around 62,600, retreating from its recent record. The pressure came as oil prices surged following escalating tensions in the Middle East, after President Donald Trump rejected Iran's response to a peace proposal, leaving the Strait of Hormuz deemed effectively closed.
Rising energy prices heightened inflation concerns and weighed on sentiment in oil-importing countries like Japan. In this context, higher input costs have the potential to erode corporate margins and force the market to reassess policy outlooks and purchasing power, potentially leading to a loss of support for riskier assets.
At the stock level, weakness was seen in SoftBank Group (-6.3%), Advantest (-2%), and Furukawa Electric (-1.6%). Nintendo also fell 8.3% after warning that hardware and software sales were expected to decline, while rising memory chip costs were weighing on profitability.
Meanwhile, Sony Group rose 8.5% after announcing a buyback plan of up to ¥500 billion and projecting an 11% increase in operating profit for the fiscal year ending March 2027, supported by growth in its music and image sensor businesses. Going forward, the Nikkei's direction is likely to remain sensitive to oil price dynamics, developments in the Strait of Hormuz, and issuers' responses to cost pressures and the global demand outlook. (asd)
Source: Newsmaker.id
