Japan's Nikkei falls as tech shares drag; Astellas surges
The Economic Times·2026-02-05 07:26

Group 1 - The Nikkei 225 Index fell 0.9% to close at 53,818.04, influenced by technology stocks amid valuation concerns and a broader Asian market slump due to rising AI investment costs [2][3] - SoftBank Group experienced a significant decline of 7% after its affiliated chip design firm Arm Holdings missed analysts' expectations on licensing revenues [2][3] - Semiconductor-related stocks saw notable drops, with Rohm down 9.1%, Advantest down 4.8%, and Disco down 4.4% in early Tokyo trading [2][3] Group 2 - The pharmaceuticals sector emerged as the top performer among the Tokyo Stock Exchange's 33 industry groups, driven by Astellas Pharma's 10% surge after the company raised its net profit forecast for the fiscal year by nearly five times [2][3] - There were 137 advancers on the Nikkei index compared to 88 decliners, indicating the significant influence of a few heavyweight tech names [2][3] - Despite the overall market decline, selective buying tied to earnings is expected to continue in Japan [2][3]