The Nikkei 225 Index dropped 0.8% to around 37,000 while the broader Topix Index lost 0.5% to 2,720 on Thursday, with Japanese shares hitting a two-week low and tracking a sharp selloff on Wall Street overnight.
US stocks sold off on Wednesday as Treasury yields surged on concerns that a new US bill could further inflate the federal deficit. In domestic developments, Japan's core machinery orders a key leading indicator of capital investment unexpectedly surged 13% in March, far outpacing expectations for a 1.6% decline.
Despite the upbeat data, sentiment was weighed down by weak economic signals elsewhere: manufacturing activity remained in contraction territory in May, while growth in the services sector also slowed.
Technology stocks led the decline, with notable losses in Disco (-1.9%), Advantest (-2.6%), and Tokyo Electron (-2.8%). Broader weakness extended to major industrials and automakers, including Mitsubishi Heavy (-2.7%), Fujikura (-2.9%), and Toyota Motor (-1.3%).
Source: Trading Economi
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