Grapevine

The benchmark Nikkei 225 index closed down 5.81 percent on Friday, or 2,216.63 points, at 35,909.70 – the second-biggest points drop in history, and the largest fall in percentage terms since March 2020 at the start of the pandemic.

The broader Topix index lost 6.14 percent, or 166.09 points, to 2,537.60.

“The chain of stock market declines did not stop,” IwaiCosmo Securities said following US and European index falls.