Tokyo market summary: Nikkei average depreciation of 509 yen, lasertech plummets by about 8%, ASML falls short of financial results announcement market expectations

Top news
The Bank of Japan will pay attention to the possibility of additional interest rate hikes and the effects of exchange rates at the September meeting - Former Director Monma
Research & Technologies Executive Economist Kazuo Monma, a former Bank of Japan director, expressed the view that there is a possibility that the Bank of Japan will go through additional interest rate hikes at the September monetary policy meeting after determining a recovery in private consumption that currently lacks strength. Mr. Monma cited April-June service prices as the most important index for predicting the Bank of Japan's monetary policy operations, and explained that he is paying attention to “whether this year's wage increases will be reflected here.” If that is confirmed, while “there may also be an interest rate hike in July at the fastest speed,” it was stated that policy interest rates “may be raised to 0.25%” at the September meeting where private consumption from April to June can be confirmed in terms of gross domestic product (GDP) as the main scenario.

The “illusion” of international cooperation to correct the depreciation of the yen, differences in the strength or weakness of each country against the dollar
While the depreciation of the yen and appreciation of the dollar do not stop in the foreign exchange market, 20 countries/regions (G20) finance ministers and central bank governors meetings will begin on the 17th US time in Washington. Japan intends to put a stop to the acceleration of the depreciation of the yen, but there is a big difference in the situation surrounding exchange rates against the dollar depending on the country/region. The reality is that changing the composition where the yen strengthens the appearance of “walking on its own feet” is not straightforward.
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The price of hydrogen was drastically raised, and Iwatani products followed by ENEOS - chilled water to spread FCV
There have been a series of movements in Japan to drastically raise the price of hydrogen, which is fuel for fuel cell vehicles (FCV). The government and automobile manufacturers are proceeding with efforts to expand the use of hydrogen for decarbonization, but there is a risk that fuel efficiency, which is more expensive than hybrid vehicles (HVs) using internal combustion engines, will hinder spread.

Top stocks with substantial shareholder returns for the fiscal year ending February, where stock prices have risen
The full-year financial results announcements for companies with financial results for the fiscal year ending February have almost been completed. There were also a number of stocks whose stock prices fluctuated drastically in the wake of financial results announcements. When the stock price increase rate from the end of 2023/12 to the most recent was ranked for companies with financial results for the fiscal year ending February, semiconductor-related products and supermarkets lined up at the top. Stocks that have expressed enhanced shareholder returns stand out.

Notable stocks
Advantest - sharp drop ASML financial results fall short of market expectations and sales to semiconductor-related corners
$Advantest(6857.JP)$has plummeted. The clue is that ASML in the Netherlands announced 1Q financial results at 14:00 Japan time on the 17th. Sales landed in the 1st quarter and fell short of market expectations for both the 2nd quarter. In response to this, we are working on mask defect inspection devices for advanced semiconductors $Lasertec(6920.JP)$In addition to the sharp drop, the company, which is a major inspection equipment company, is also expanding its decline.
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Lasertech plummets by about 8%, ASML announces financial results and falls short of market expectations
UPDATE- [Earnings Report] ASML's 24Q1 sales of 5.29 billion euros are lower than expected

Toyota's compact HV Lexus receives orders for over 20,000 units and accelerates production in Iwate
$Toyota Motor(7203.JP)$We will accelerate production of hybrid vehicles (HVs), which are being re-evaluated globally. The new model “LBX” produced at a factory in Iwate prefecture is a small multi-purpose sports car (SUV) of the luxury car brand “Lexus,” but orders reached about 22,000 units, which exceeded sales plans in about 5 months. Lexus grabs new fans as a low-cost “for beginners” and captures strong demand for HVs.

Resonac's stock price is high for the first time in 5 years, and net profit for the current fiscal year is rising
$Resonac Holdings(4004.JP)$There was a sudden backlash. It hit a high of 4000 yen, which was 15.44% higher at one time, for the first time in about 5 years since 2019/4. On the 16th, it was announced that consolidated final profit and loss for the fiscal year ending 24/12 (current fiscal year) is expected to be a surplus of 25 billion yen (deficit of 18.9 billion yen in the previous fiscal year). It is 15 billion yen higher than the previous forecast. It surpassed the quick consensus surplus of 12.9 billion yen (as of the 3rd, 7 companies), which is the average market forecast, and a favorable purchase came in.

Shipping stocks are high across the board, speculating due to the rekindling of geopolitical risks in the Strait of Hormuz and the rise in the Baltic Index
$Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha(9107.JP)$Starting with being bought for 2063 yen, which is 5% at one point, $Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha(9101.JP)$、 $Mitsui O.S.K. Lines(9104.JP)$Shipping stocks, etc. are eye-catching with steady price movements across the board. In terms of gains and falls by industry, “shipping” is at the top of the 33 industries in terms of price increase rate. As the situation in the Middle East becomes even more tense due to Iran's retaliatory attacks against Israel, awareness of geopolitical risks in the Strait of Hormuz has been rekindled, and speculations about soaring container ship market conditions have been rekindled.
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Kawasaki Shigeru --- American securities were upgraded due to a sharp rebound and increased probability of profit increase
$Kawasaki Heavy Industries(7012.JP)$There was a drastic backlash. At Morgan Stanley MUFG Securities, investment decisions have been upgraded from “underweight” to “equal weight,” and the target stock price has also been raised from 3000 yen to 5,000 yen. It seems that the profit structure ratio for ships that are expected to have a high operating rate and robots for semiconductors, which are expected to be booming, has increased, and it seems that they are evaluating that the combination of profit increases has increased. The business profit forecast for the fiscal year ending 25/3 will be raised from the previous 96 billion yen to 113 billion yen.