Japanese stock indexes concluded Tuesday's session with a significant decline after investors returned from the previous day's holiday, with the Nikkei index touching its lowest levels since December 2 early in the session amid sharp losses in the technology sector that followed its counterpart on Wall Street.
In terms of trading, the Nikkei 225 index ended the session down by 1.83% at 38,474.30 points, after hitting 38,305.91 during the session, its lowest level since December 2. At the same time, the broader TOPIX index fell by 1.16% to record 2,682.58 points.
The Japanese stock indexes mirrored the losses of their American counterparts with a sharp drop in technology sector stocks after the U.S. government decided yesterday to impose additional restrictions on semiconductor and technology exports to China. The technology sector was the worst-performing on the Nikkei, with a decline of nearly 2.1%.
Among the biggest losers on the Nikkei was the Japanese semiconductor testing equipment manufacturer Advantest, a supplier to the American company NVIDIA, which saw its shares drop by 9.21% following NVIDIA’s losses in light of the Biden administration's new decision.
At the same time, shares of Yaskawa Electric dropped by 4.31%, while shares of Ryohin Keikaku, the owner of Muji stores, rose by 4.67%, making it the biggest winner on the Nikkei.
On the other hand, energy sector stocks achieved the highest gains on the Nikkei due to the significant rise in oil prices, with shares of Idemitsu Kosan refinery increasing by 2.11%.
