Nikkei ends higher as Advantest's strong profit forecast lifts chip stocks
QQQ•Nikkei rises while Topix falls
TOKYO, July 30 (Reuters) - Japan's Nikkei share average ended higher on Thursday as Advantest's robust profit forecast lifted chip-related stocks, while banks pulled down the broader Topix.
The Nikkei .N225 rose 0.71% to close at 61,867.43, while the Topix .TOPX fell 0.54% to 3,952.5.
Advantest outlook boosts chip-related shares
Advantest 6857.T jumped 10.85% after raising its annual operating profit forecast by 35% on Wednesday as AI spending drives demand for its chip-testing equipment.
"Thanks to Advantest's tremendous outlook, shares in other chip-related stocks rose," said Kazuaki Shimada, chief strategist at IwaiCosmo Securities.
Chip-making equipment maker Tokyo Electron 8035.T rose 4.48%. Memory chip maker Kioxia 285A.T climbed 2.92%, while Murata Manufacturing 6981.T, a leading maker of multi-layer ceramic capacitors (MLCCs) used to regulate power in AI servers, rose 2.97%.
Shimada said global concerns over heavy spending on AI infrastructure outpacing revenue growth eased after Microsoft MSFT.O signalled its massive spending bets were paying off.
Nasdaq NQc1 and S&P EScv1 futures rose in Asian trading, signalling a potential rebound in U.S. technology stocks later in the day, said Shimada.
Banks and other large stocks weigh on the market
Wall Street ended sharply lower overnight after the Federal Reserve held interest rates steady, with AI-related chip stocks adding to recent declines ahead of quarterly reports from Microsoft and Meta Platforms META.O. The Nasdaq 100 index marked an 11% drop from its June record high. .N
In Japan, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group 8306.T and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group 8316.T fell more than 3% each.
