Nikkei Climbs as Asian Markets Close Mixed After AI Selloff

Asian markets were mixed at the start of the week, with Monday’s trading pressured by sharp losses in Japanese and South Korean technology shares after prominent U.S. artificial-intelligence executives called for a slower pace of AI development. Japan’s Nikkei fell 0.81% Monday to its lowest close in roughly six weeks, while SoftBank Group dropped more than 10% amid concerns about its OpenAI investment; financial stocks helped lift the broader Topix. Tokyo stocks partially recovered Tuesday as investors bought recently weaker shares, including SoftBank, and the Nikkei rose 0.65% by the close, although lingering AI concerns and elevated oil prices restrained sentiment. South Korea and Taiwan posted modest gains Tuesday, while Hong Kong was nearly flat and mainland Chinese markets declined, led by a 0.64% drop in Shenzhen. The dollar strengthened into the upper-154-yen range amid speculation about Federal Reserve policy, adding another factor for regional investors to weigh.