Japan's Nikkei experienced a sharp decline on Tuesday, pressured by accelerating selling in AI-related equities following a downturn in US chip shares. The benchmark Nikkei 225 decreased 1.82% to 67777, retreating from lows near the 67000-mark and concluding at a two-week trough. The index has now depreciated for a fourth straight session. Overnight, the tech-centric Nasdaq shed 0.44% as shares of semiconductor companies weakened. The International Monetary Fund revised upward its economic growth projection for Japan to 0.7% for 2026, a 0.1 percentage point increase from its July estimate, citing supportive policies partially mitigating the effects of elevated energy costs. Japan’s growth rate is anticipated to be 0.7% in 2027, maintaining the level projected in July. The report indicated that growth is expected to stabilize at that level in the subsequent year. Nevertheless, inflationary concerns are tempering investor sentiment in the near term. Data released Tuesday revealed Japan’s wholesale prices increased 6.8% year-on-year in September, while yen-denominated import prices surged 24.5%.