Micron beats expectations, sending Nikkei sharply higher

2026-06-25

In Tokyo trading on the morning of the 25th, the Nikkei Stock Average rebounded sharply and at one point rose more than 2,400 points from the previous day. Following strong results from U.S. memory chip giant Micron Technology, buying spread across AI and semiconductor-related stocks, with the index at one point recovering to the 71,000 level.

Strong earnings improve market sentiment

In earnings for the three months to May announced by Micron in the evening of the 24th U.S. time, net profit came to $28.2 billion, 15 times higher than a year earlier and above market expectations. Growth in AI-related orders and a record profit helped improve investor sentiment.

Recently, selling pressure on semiconductor stocks had intensified, starting with South Korea's SK Hynix, a peer company. But Micron's results eased concerns about the outlook. Leading the Nikkei higher were AI and semiconductor-related names, with Kioxia Holdings at one point rising as much as 15%. Buying also came into Advantest and Tokyo Electron, supporting the broader market.

Growing sense of relief in the market

Kohei Ohnishi, senior investment strategy researcher at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities, said that even as the rally in AI and semiconductor stocks raised concerns about overheating, the market found reassurance as the strong fundamental backdrop became clear.

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