Surpasses 50,000 for the First Time Ever
Up 26% Compared to Last Year
The Nikkei 225, Japan's leading stock index, closed at a record high for the year-end closing price.
On December 30, the last trading day of the year, the Nikkei 225 ended at 50,339. This is the first time in history that the year-end closing price has exceeded 50,000, marking a 26.2% increase compared to the previous record high at the end of last year (39,894).
According to the Asahi Shimbun, the annual increase of 10,444 points surpassed the previous record set in 1989, during the peak of the asset bubble, when the index rose by 8,756 points. This is the first time in 36 years that the record has been broken.
The Nikkei 225 fell to the 31,000 range in April due to the impact of U.S. tariffs, but benefited from rising semiconductor stock prices driven by demand for artificial intelligence (AI), as well as the rise of Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, who advocates for active fiscal policies. By the end of October, the index had surpassed the 52,000 mark.
The yen/dollar exchange rate moved around 156 yen per dollar in the Tokyo foreign exchange market on this day. In late April, it was in the 139 yen range, but overall, the yen has continued to weaken.
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