Nikkei 225 drops 1.4 percent as chip stocks face profit-taking
Published on 10/08/2026 at 13:11 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael Müller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS
The Nikkei 225 ended October 8, 2026, at 69,042 points, down 1.4 percent, as investors locked in gains after the recent rally above 70,000 and rising bond yields pressured technology shares, Xinhua reported.
Chip shares lead the decline
SoftBank Group dropped 4.3 percent and Tokyo Electron lost 2.5 percent, while Mitsubishi UFJ weakened more than 3 percent, according to TradingKey. Morning breadth was weak, with 188 Nikkei constituents declining, 36 advancing and one unchanged, BigGo Finance reported.
The retreat followed profit-taking after the index's rapid advance and came as the 10-year US Treasury yield briefly reached 5.36 percent, its highest level since 2002, according to Xinhua.
Fast Retailing posts record profit
Fast Retailing, a major Nikkei 225 constituent, reported operating profit of JPY 743.13 billion for the year ended August 31, 2026, up 32 percent from the prior year and above its forecast and analyst estimates. The company forecast operating profit of JPY 830 billion for the year ending August 2027, Reuters reported.
What comes next
Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications is scheduled to release August household spending at 8:30 a.m. JST on October 9, 2026. The median forecast calls for a 4.2 percent year-over-year decline and a 0.3 percent monthly decrease, according to Mace News.
