Japan’s Nikkei slumps as tech shares track Wall Street declines

TOKYO: Japan’s Nikkei share average slid sharply on Friday, dragged down by technology-related stocks, as fresh valuation concerns drove US stocks lower overnight.

The Nikkei 225 Index slumped 2.3% to 48,678.11 in early trading, trimming gains from the previous session.

The broader Topix was down 0.6%. Overnight, Wall Street stocks slid in a sharp reversal from an early rally, as optimism faded over quarterly results from artificial intelligence bellwether Nvidia.

There were 131 advancers on the Nikkei index against 93 decliners.

The largest losers in the index were heavyweights in the AI sector, including Advantest, which declined 9.3%, followed by SoftBank Group, which slumped more than 10%.