The Nikkei 225 Index fell 3.3% to below 51,700 while the broader Topix Index declined 3.2% to 3,494 on Monday, with both benchmarks hitting their lowest levels in more than two months as the Middle East conflict entered a fourth week with no signs of easing. President Donald Trump threatened to strike major Iranian power plants if the Strait of Hormuz is not reopened to shipping soon, while Tehran warned it would target key US and Israeli assets across the region if its energy facilities were hit. Elevated oil prices continued to fuel inflation concerns and reinforced a hawkish tilt among major central banks, with the Bank of Japan keeping rates unchanged last week but signaling readiness to tighten policy further. Technology, financial and consumer stocks led the decline, with notable losses from Kioxia Holdings (-4.4%), Advantest (-5.4%), Tokyo Electron (-3%), Mitsubishi UFJ (-4.6%) and Fast Retailing (-3.6%).
