Nikkei records biggest decline in 4 months due to inflation fears

Japan’s Nikkei index posted its biggest decline in more than four months on Monday, ending the session at a two-week low after a bigger-than-expected rise in US inflation in May sent Wall Street sharply lower at the weekend.

The Nikkei index fell 3.01 percent to close at 26,987.44 points, the largest decline recorded since January 27. The index also reached its lowest level since May 27. The broader Topix index lost 2.16 percent to 1,901.06 points.

Chip maker Tokyo Electron fell 5.26 percent, the biggest pressure on the index, followed by technology investment group SoftBank, which fell 6.85 percent. Air conditioner maker Daikin Industries lost 4.61 percent and robotics maker Fanuc lost 3.64 percent.

Bucking the trend, Kansai Electric rose 2.61 percent and was the biggest gainer on the Nikkei after the company that operates nuclear reactors to generate electric power announced that it would resume work on a reactor in August, two months earlier than previously announced.