Nikkei 225 Just Crossed 60,000 for the First Time in History — But 78% of Stocks Fell on the Same Day

The Nikkei 225 crossed 60,000 for the first time in the index’s history at some point on April 23 during the Tokyo morning session. As semiconductor stocks and SoftBank drove the price-weighted index higher with the unique momentum that AI-adjacent themes have generated across Asian markets in 2026, the milestone number had been getting closer for weeks. There was something almost theatrical about it when it finally happened, with the index reaching 60,013.98 before declining. From an economic perspective, the 60,000 level is meaningless. It is a round number, a threshold created by its own roundness. However, markets react to these events in ways that are at least psychologically real, if not rational. The Nikkei dropped 1.06 percent to 58,952 as profit-taking took hold, and the session ended below that figure. In the same morning, the milestone came and went.

The information surrounding the record is what makes it worth closely examining. Roughly 78% of the 1,600 stocks listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange’s Prime Market actually fell on the day the Nikkei surpassed 60,000. Of those stocks, only 17% increased. The Nikkei 225 divided by the larger Topix is known as the NT ratio, and it reached a record high of 15.74 on Wednesday. This indicates how much the gap has grown between the headline index’s small number of large-cap technology companies and the rest of the Japanese stock market. On the same day, the Topix, which monitors a much wider range of businesses, dropped by more than 1.2%. On the day of a purported market milestone, these two indices trading in opposing directions provide a more accurate picture than the 60,000 figure by itself.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION — NIKKEI 225

The focus of the rally is a narrow range of names and themes. Masayoshi Son’s holding company, SoftBank Group, which is now an AI investment vehicle, saw a daily gain of more than 6%. Additional assistance was given by Advantest and Tokyo Electron, two manufacturers of semiconductor equipment that supply the global AI chip manufacturing chain. All of this is partially driven by a global catalyst. The South Korean chipmaker SK Hynix announced record Q1 2026 revenue, which was fueled by High Bandwidth Memory chip prices that increased by more than 40% annually. The specialized memory found in Nvidia’s most potent AI processors, known as HBM chips, is sold out through at least the third quarter of 2026. This increase in demand directly benefits Japanese businesses that create and produce the machinery needed to make these chips.

A distinct but parallel tailwind is provided by the yen, which is currently trading at about 159 to the US dollar. Japanese exporters’ yen-denominated earnings are inflated by a declining yen, and foreign investors can purchase Japanese stocks at a lower dollar cost. Additionally, it indicates that the Nikkei’s gains are far smaller than the headline figures indicate when converted back to dollars. A yen-holding investor who purchased the index a year ago is doing remarkably well. While still doing well, an investor holding dollars is performing noticeably worse. For the foreign capital that has been investing in Japanese stocks over the last eighteen months, this distinction is significant.

For the Nikkei, J.P. Morgan has set a year-end goal of 70,000. That figure would be an additional gain of about 17% from the index’s current trading level, and the announcement strengthened the AI bull case. The semiconductor cycle’s continued acceleration and the yen’s continued weakness will determine whether 70,000 is a realistic or optimistic estimate. These factors will determine whether Japanese exporters’ current earnings growth can be sustained. How long either condition lasts is still unknown.

Observing the Nikkei reach 60,000 and then decline in the same session gives the impression that the index is negotiating a region where positive news is genuine but somewhat priced, and where the gap between the index level and what it indicates about the overall economy is abnormally wide. Oil at $101 per barrel, persistent tensions in the Middle East, and a central bank that has hardly changed interest rates while the yen fluctuated all had an impact on Japan’s economy. The businesses that provide the global AI infrastructure are doing remarkably well. Compared to a record-breaking stock index close, the majority of other Japanese companies are engaged in more intricate, modest, and unphotogenic activities.