News On Japan

Nikkei Plunges More Than 3,100 Points on Technology Sell-Off

TOKYO - Tokyo stocks tumbled sharply on June 8th, with the Nikkei Stock Average falling more than 3,100 points at one stage of morning trading as investors rushed to sell technology shares following a steep decline in U.S. markets at the end of last week.

The benchmark index briefly dropped below the 64,000 level for the first time in two weeks since May 25th. The decline ranked as the fourth-largest intraday point drop in the history of the Nikkei.

Selling pressure intensified across artificial intelligence-related and semiconductor stocks after weakness in U.S. high-tech shares fueled concerns over the sector's outlook. The broad-based sell-off weighed heavily on the Tokyo market, pushing the benchmark index sharply lower as trading progressed.

Market participants continued to monitor developments in global technology stocks, with concerns over valuations and investor sentiment contributing to heightened volatility.

Source: Kyodo

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A powerful earthquake struck off Mindanao Island in the southern Philippines at 8:38 a.m. (Japan time) on June 8th, generating tsunami waves across parts of the Pacific, causing building collapses and casualties near the epicenter, and prompting the Japan Meteorological Agency to issue a tsunami advisory for a wide stretch of Japan's Pacific coastline.

A clinic director and a former Peruvian staff member have been referred to prosecutors after the man allegedly performed medical procedures without a license, including an external cephalic version—a procedure used to manually turn a baby into the correct position before birth—at an obstetrics and gynecology clinic in Fukuoka City, raising concerns about patient safety and oversight in maternity care.

A large bear was captured on security camera footage running through a shopping arcade in central Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, in the early hours of June 7th, as authorities stepped up warnings following a series of bear sightings across the city.

The family of James "Weston" Higginbotham, a 20-year-old Auburn University student who disappeared during a family vacation in Japan, announced on June 7th that he has been found dead after a volunteer search-and-rescue group located his body in a mountainous area outside Kyoto, bringing a week-long multinational search to a tragic end.

Japan's Meteorological Agency announced on June 7th that the rainy season is believed to have begun in the Tokai and Kanto-Koshin regions, marking the seasonal shift to wetter weather across a broad area of the country.

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Tokyo stocks tumbled sharply on June 8th, with the Nikkei Stock Average falling more than 3,100 points at one stage of morning trading as investors rushed to sell technology shares following a steep decline in U.S. markets at the end of last week.

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