Japan’s Nikkei Sheds Early Gains amid Rising JGB Yields (UPDATE 1)

TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s Nikkei share average shed early gains to end lower on Wednesday as investors sold growth stocks after the nation’s benchmark 10-year yield hit its highest in more than 12 years.

The Nikkei fell 0.77% to close at 38,556.87, after rising as much as 0.7% to track strong performances of U.S. chip-related stocks, driven by AI darling Nvidia.

The broader Topix ended nearly 1% lower at 2,741.62.

“The market became nervous about rising JGB yields, which is a headwind for heavyweight growth stocks,” Shoichi Arisawa, general manager of the investment research department at IwaiCosmo Securities said.

“The gains in domestic stocks were eliminated by the rising JGB yields.”

Japan’s 10-year bond yield hit 1.075%, its highest level since December 2011, as traders gauged growing bets that policy…