SoftBank Drives Nikkei Above 67,000 Points for First Time

The Nikkei index in Japan exceeded the 67,000-point mark for the first time on Monday, propelled by shares of companies linked to artificial intelligence.

This performance in the Japanese stock markets was supported by SoftBank Group, which overtook Toyota Motor Company to become the most valuable company in Japan.

At the mid-session break, the Nikkei rose 1.1% to 67,038.24 points, having reached a high of 67,231.28 points earlier.

SoftBank provided the largest contribution to the index's rise by a wide margin, with its shares jumping 10.3%, pushing the Nikkei up by 618 points out of a total 709-point gain.

The company's market capitalization increased to approximately 47.2 trillion yen (296.0 billion dollars), while Toyota's value shrank to about 45.7 trillion yen after its shares dropped 4.8% on Monday.

During the weekend, SoftBank pledged around 75 billion euros (87.3 billion dollars) over five years to develop artificial intelligence infrastructure in France.

The difference in performance between technology stocks and the broader market was evident in the Topix index, which declined 0.2%.

Both the Nikkei and Topix indices had recorded record highs on Friday, supported by optimism about a near agreement to resolve the Middle East conflict, but the new week began with ongoing disputes between Washington and Tehran over key issues.

Maki Sawada, an analyst at Nomura Securities, stated, "Given current expectations for expanding demand for AI servers, buying interest is spreading to AI-related stocks that had previously lagged," citing electronics component manufacturer Murata as an example.

Murata's shares surged 14.1%, marking the largest percentage gain on the Nikkei index.

Among the 33 sub-indices on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, eight rose, led by the information technology sector index, which jumped 4.3%. The automotive sector was among the weakest performers, falling 4.2%.

On the Nikkei, 73 stocks gained out of 225, while 152 declined.

Not all semiconductor-related stocks rose; Advantest shares fell 2.2%, and Fujikura shares dropped 3.6%.

Mitsubishi Motors recorded the largest percentage loss, plummeting 9.1%.