Nikkei, Topix, Kospi: Japanese leading index closes in positive territory - tech stocks weigh on China stock market

In Japan, South Korea and the USA, the reporting season for technology companies is in full swing. Another monetary policy date takes a back seat.

Tokyo, Seoul. The Asian stock markets performed mixed on Thursday. Gains in Japan were offset by losses in China and South Korea.

The Nikkei index advanced 1.1 percent to 64,659 points,

the broader Topix gained 0.3 percent.

The Shanghai Composite lost 0.8 percent, the CSI300 fell one percent.

The Kospi lost 1.2 percent.

The start-up index ChiNext Composite and the technology-focused Shanghai STAR50 index each fell more than four percent.

In Japan, South Korea and the USA, the reporting season for technology companies is in full swing. Hundreds of Japanese companies will report their results on Thursday and Friday. Different reactions to business figures from the AI ​​sector caused uncertainty among investors. High spending at Google parent company Alphabet caused its shares to slide by ten percent in after-hours trading, reducing its market value by almost $400 billion.

Advantest has raised its forecast for annual operating profit by 14 percent, and shares rose by a good nine percent at their peak.

This also pulled other stocks from the chip and AI sector up: Tokyo Electron's shares gained 2.4 percent, and those of SoftBank Group rose by 1.8 percent.

In addition, an interest rate decision from the Japanese central bank is expected on Friday. “The market may be showing some nervousness ahead of these events,” said Nomura Securities equity strategist Maki Sawada. “We may see investors taking a risk-off stance.”

Economists expect interest rates to remain unchanged. However, the monetary authorities could adjust their inflation forecast upwards and signal a willingness to take further interest rate steps, insiders recently told the Reuters news agency. The BoJ raised its key interest rate to a 31-year high of 1.25 percent last month.