Japanese Stocks Rebound Slightly, Nikkei Index Climbs 1.9%

Summary：US natural gas futures fell over 4% after hitting a one-week high, as investors assess potential supply impacts from Middle East tensions, causing energy price volatility.

The Japanese stock market rose on Thursday as it attempted to stabilize following a three-day decline prompted by the Middle East conflict, though the increase was not sufficient to fully recover the previous cumulative losses. The Nikkei Index (NI225) closed up 1.9% at 55,278.06 points, having reached a maximum intraday gain of 4.4%. The Tokyo Stock Exchange Index (TOPIX) also rose by 1.9%, closing at 3,702.67 points, with an intraday peak of nearly 4%.

Market Sentiment Amid Middle East Conflict

Affected by the broad sell-off in Asian stock markets, the Nikkei Index fell to a one-month low on Wednesday, with a cumulative three-day decline of 7.8%. Amid the Middle East conflict, investors have been selling off risk assets and taking profits after the stock market reached record highs. Shuutaro Yasuda, a market analyst at Tokai Tokyo Intelligence Laboratory, stated: "The market looked overheated when stock prices were soaring recently, but this sense of short-term overheating is gradually dissipating after a rapid correction."

Strong Performance in Semiconductor and Energy Stocks

On Thursday, Asian stock markets rose amid a decline in US bonds, indicating a cautious return of risk appetite after being heavily impacted by the escalation in the Middle East conflict. Semiconductor-related giants propelled the Nikkei Index upward, with Advantest (6857), a chip testing equipment manufacturer, rising 4.2%, and Tokyo Electron (8035), a chip manufacturing equipment maker, gaining 2.5%. Technology investment group SoftBank (9984) climbed 4.3%.

The energy exploration stock index (.IMING.T) surged 6.8%, with oil and gas explorer Inpex (1605) setting a new closing high.

Slight Decline in Airline Stocks

On the other hand, airline stocks slightly declined. Japan's largest airline, All Nippon Airways (9202), fell 0.7%, and competitor Japan Airlines (9201) dropped 1.1%. Concerns over Middle East tensions and rising oil prices continue to affect airline stock performance. By Thursday's close, 176 of the Nikkei Index components rose, while 48 declined.

Risk Warning and Disclaimer

The market carries risks, and investment should be cautious. This article does not constitute personal investment advice and has not taken into account individual users' specific investment goals, financial situations, or needs. Users should consider whether any opinions, viewpoints, or conclusions in this article are suitable for their particular circumstances. Investing based on this is at one's own responsibility.

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Written byTraderKnows

Created date:2026-03-05 07:21

Last Updated:2026-03-05 14:36

Independent Analysis: Manually researched and fact-checked by the TraderKnows Compliance Team, based on public regulatory records.

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