Nikkei Holds at 61,940 as Macquarie Flags Tech Outperformers

The Nikkei 225 closed at 61,940 on May 21 after surging 3.5%, driven by SoftBank’s 20%+ rally on OpenAI IPO news and ¥948 billion in foreign inflows. The move followed BofA Securities’ May 18 upgrade that lifted the year-end target to 67,000, citing AI-driven earnings growth. A Reuters poll released May 20 showed one-third of Japanese firms using or planning AI robots, with 80% of transportation-equipment makers involved. On May 21, Macquarie highlighted Renesas, Advantest and Tokyo Electron as top picks, noting semiconductor capex acceleration into fiscal 2026-27 and strong Tokyo Electron results. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed a bullish reflation view with a 4,300 TOPIX target despite short-term energy shocks.