{
  "id": 1666516,
  "title": "Tokyo stocks fall on stalled US-Iran peace talks, rising bond yields",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/18/tokyo-stocks-fall-on-stalled-us-iran-peace-talks-rising-bond-yields",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-08-18T07:26:41.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Mainichi",
    "slug": "the-mainichi",
    "url": "https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20260818/p2g/00m/0bu/025000c"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Tokyo stocks experienced a significant decline on Tuesday, with the Nikkei stock index plummeting over 2 percent due to stalled U.S.-Iran peace talks and rising bond yields. The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average closed down 1,759.52 points, or 2.54 percent, from Monday's level of 67,460.73. The broader Topix index also fell 43.89 points, or 1.05 percent, to 4,140.22. The U.S. dollar strengthened to the upper 159 yen range in Tokyo due to heightened Middle East tensions and investor flight to safety. The benchmark 10-year Japanese government bond yield surged to 2.945 percent, its highest level since October 1996, reflecting the impact of both rising U.S. Treasury yields and soaring U.S. bond yields. President Donald Trump's announcement that he would not seek to extend the U.S.-Iran memorandum of understanding that had expired on Monday, fueled the market sell-off across a wide range of stocks. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures breached the $80 per barrel mark, exacerbating the negative impact on Tokyo stocks. Some real estate shares even hit their yearly lows. The afternoon saw further losses as investors reaped profits from recent gains in artificial intelligence and semiconductor-related stocks, marking the end of the Nikkei's five-day winning streak. Shota Sando, an equity market analyst at Tokai Tokyo Intelligence Laboratory Co., noted that the market's lack of trading cues following the earnings season made it particularly vulnerable to the rising bond yields.",
  "summary": "TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Tokyo stocks fell Tuesday, with the Nikkei stock index plunging over 2 percent, as stalled U.S.-Iran negotiations to end the war and",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "City AM",
        "title": "FTSE 100 Live: Stocks to dip as oil surges after US-Iran ceasefire expires",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/18/ftse-100-live-stocks-to-dip-as-oil-surges-after-us-iran-ceasefire",
        "published": "2026-08-18T05:20:56.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Investing.com",
        "title": "FTSE 100 today: Stocks rise as energy majors defy Hormuz strike fears",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/18/ftse-100-today-stocks-rise-as-energy-majors-defy-hormuz-strike-fears",
        "published": "2026-08-18T07:27:21.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}