Nikkei 225 falls 20% from June high as AI stock selloff deepens, poised for bear market

The significance here is that AI enthusiasm, which has been a global equity theme rather than a Japan-specific one, is now driving a major national benchmark to the edge of a technical bear market — a sign that the correction is broad enough to overwhelm other market supports. This affects anyone with exposure to AI-linked equities, not just Japanese holders, given how correlated the trade has become across markets. The open question is whether the selling stays concentrated in AI names or spills into the wider index, and whether the 20% threshold itself becomes a psychological trigger for further de-risking.