Japan's Nikkei slips as chip shares pressured by AI capex caution
EWJ•Japan's Nikkei fell 0.8% to 64,128.54 as chip shares declined amid investor caution about AI spending next year; the Topix was flat.
1. Chip shares weigh
The Nikkei fell 0.8% on Thursday after gaining 0.9% the previous day, while the broader Topix was flat. Tokyo Electron dropped 4.1%, Screen Holdings fell 6% and Lasertec declined 2.7%, as investors weighed whether AI capital spending would continue into 2027.
2. Other stocks diverge
Fujikura lost 3% and SoftBank Group fell 3.1%. Trend Micro gained 6.6% after critical PHP vulnerabilities prompted several European governments to take websites offline, while SHIFT rose 9% and Sony gained 2.6%.
