Nikkei drops to near 3-week low as spike in bond yields spooks investors

TOKYO, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Japanese shares dropped on Friday,
with the Nikkei on course to log its biggest fall since July,
after a spike in global bond yields spooked investors already
uneasy about the market's stretched valuation.
Nikkei average .N225 fell 2.54% to 29,400.80, hitting its
lowest level in almost three weeks. If sustained, it will be the
biggest daily drop since July 31, when it fell 2.82%.
For now, the Nikkei managed to find a support at its 25-day
moving average of around 29,200.
The broader Topix lost 1.98% to 1,888.02 .TOPX
Except one, mining shares .IMING.T , all of the Tokyo Stock
Exchange's 33 industry subindexes were in the red, with
electronic machinery makers .IELEC.T , pharmaceuticals
.IPHAM.T and real estate companies .IRLTY.T also falling
more than 2%.
Semi-conductor related shares, one of the main leaders of
the market's rally to 30-year highs, succumbed to heavy selling,
after U.S. chip shares .SOX fell 5.8%.
Sumco 3436.T fell as much as 4.8% while Lasertec 6920.T
shed up to 5.8%. Advantest 6857.T fell 5.1% while Screen
Holdings 7735.T lost 4.6%.
Precautions about rising inflation and a weak U.S. bond
auction boosted global bond yields, dampening investors'
appetite for risk assets.
"In a nutshell, I think the stock market had risen a bit too
much," said Soichiro Monji, chief strategist at Nishimura
Securities.
Rising bond yields also hit assets that have been considered
as an alternative to low-yielding bonds. The TSE's index of real
estate investment trusts (REITs) .TREIT fell as much as 3.0%.
But higher bond yields are seen as beneficial for Japanese
financials, with Dai-ichi Life Holdings 8750.T rising 1.3%.
Market players are now awaiting whether the Bank of Japan,
which has refrained from buying stock exchange traded funds
(ETFs) so far this month, will purchase them later in the day.
The central bank in its next policy meeting is expected to
signal it will make its ETF purchases more flexible.