Snapshot: The Nikkei 225 surged 1.65% to a fresh record close of 71,053, powered by immense domestic relief over secured supply chains and a broad-based rally in local mega-cap financials. The geopolitical agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz directly mitigates Japan’s structural energy-import vulnerabilities, driving down crude and prompting Japanese equities to completely shrug off Wall Street’s hawkish Fed jitters.
- Strong domestic institutional buying pushed heavyweights Lasertec up 7.1% and Tokyo Electron up 4.7%, cementing the key 71,000 level as a major psychological and technical breakout floor.
- A sharp drop in WTI crude to $84.65 per barrel provides a lasting margin tailwind for Japanese corporates, though traders must monitor the 08:30 ET US macro prints for any disruptive Treasury yield spike.
Bias into NY: We hold a strong bullish bias on the N225 into the New York crossover, targeting the 71,500 level; the structural unwinding of Japan’s import-cost drag should easily absorb any temporary headwind from a firmer US dollar.