Japan’s Stock Market Hits Record High as SoftBank Soars Over 10% on Tech Optimism

Japan’s Nikkei 225 index surged to a fresh all-time high of 44,396.95 points on Thursday (Sept 11), tracking Wall Street’s overnight rally fueled by expectations of a Federal Reserve rate cut and encouraging inflation data.

SoftBank Leads Market Gains

The standout performer was SoftBank Group, a heavyweight in Japan’s benchmark, which surged more than 10% for a second consecutive session. The rally followed a Wall Street Journal report that OpenAI had signed a cloud-computing agreement with Oracle worth around $300 billion over five years.

In the U.S., Oracle shares skyrocketed nearly 36% on Wednesday after the company revealed massive cloud demand and forecasted $18 billion in cloud infrastructure revenue by fiscal 2026, with projections climbing to $32 billion, $73 billion, $114 billion, and $144 billion in subsequent years.

Andrew Jackson, head of Japanese equity strategy at ORTUS Advisors, commented: “SoftBank is poised for further gains as investors draw connections between Oracle’s growth trajectory and its strategic collaboration with SoftBank, particularly through the Stargate program announced earlier this year.”

The Stargate initiative, unveiled in January by U.S. President Donald Trump alongside OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Oracle’s Larry Ellison, and SoftBank’s founder Masayoshi Son, is a $500 billion U.S.-backed program aimed at advancing next-generation technology infrastructure.

Energy and Utilities Boost Nikkei

Beyond SoftBank, energy and utilities stocks provided additional support. Mitsui Mining and Smelting gained over 5%, while electrical component maker Fujikura rose 4%. The Topix index also reversed earlier losses to edge up 0.2%.

Asia-Pacific Markets Mixed

South Korea: Kospi advanced 0.65%, while the Kosdaq added 0.39%.

Australia: S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.44%.

Hong Kong: Hang Seng fell 0.29%, while the Hang Seng Tech Index was flat.

China: CSI 300 reversed course to jump 1.77%.

India: Nifty 50 was flat, while Sensex ticked up 0.15%.

Wall Street Extends Record Run

On Wall Street, most major indexes closed at record highs after the latest producer price index (PPI) showed inflation easing.

S&P 500 rose 0.3% to finish at 6,532.04, hitting a new record close and intraday peak of 6,555.97.

Nasdaq Composite edged up 0.03% to 21,886.06, also marking a record close after reaching an intraday high earlier in the session.

Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 220.42 points, or 0.48%, to 45,490.92, dragged down by Apple shares as its latest iPhone launch disappointed investors.