Summary
- Major Japanese gaming companies, including Nintendo, Sony, and Bandai Namco, are experiencing a substantial drop in their respective share prices.
- Japanese markets opened this morning and investors began to rapidly dump stock in response to Donald Trump’s global tariffs.
- Japan is adopting a diplomatic response to the United States’ tariffs.
Nintendo, Sony, Bandai Namco and several other major Japanese companies are seeing substantial drops in the value of their respective share prices in response to Donald Trump’s global trade tariffs. The tariffs, which began on April 5, have sparked a global economic crisis as stock markets react to the economic uncertainty associated with the United States’ unprecedented protectionism.
The value of the S&P 500, a stock market index that tracks the performance of 500 leading companies on the United States’ stock exchanges, has fallen 12 per cent since the tariffs were confirmed. The Dow Jones, an index that tracks 30 prominent United States-based companies, is likewise down over 10 per cent.
Market Collapse
In Japan, which has been set a tariff rate of 24 per cent, major gaming companies are beginning to feel the pressure. Nintendo, which just unveiled the Switch 2, has seen its stock price drop almost 8 per cent since markets opened this morning. In addition to the tariffs, Nintendo is also grappling with discontent over the pricing of the Nintendo Switch 2 and its games.
Sony’s stock price is down over 10 per cent, despite the company’s relative success in recent memory. Sony is still up 17 per cent for the year, as the market was still in a strong position prior to Trump’s tariffs. Sony’s upcoming first-party releases include Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, Ghost of Yotei and Days Gone Remastered.
Bandai Namco’s stock price is down over 7 per cent today, but is still up a staggering 57 per cent for the year. The company is publishing Little Nightmares 3 and Elden Ring: Nightreign.
Other major Japanese gaming companies affected by the tariffs include Konami (down 5 per cent), Sega (down 7 per cent), Koei Tecmo (down 5 per cent) and Capcom (down 6 per cent).
Japan is striving to avoid a direct confrontation with the United States regarding the tariffs, with prime minister Shigeru Ishiba saying that Japan would be willing to create jobs in the United States, provided the tariffs are reduced or removed. Other jurisdictions, including Canada and China, have already announced aggressive counter-measures to the tariffs, with the latter simply placing an additional 34 per cent tariff on all imports from the United States.
