TOKYO — Japanese stocks fell on Wednesday, giving back a large part of the previous session's gains as investors took profits after the Nikkei 225 closed above 70,000 for the first time in about three months and oil prices climbed back above $100 a barrel.

The Nikkei 225 index dropped 648.27 points, or 0.92%, to close at 70,035.71, narrowly holding above the closely watched 70,000 level.

On Tuesday, the benchmark rose 1.05% to 70,683.98, its highest close in three months, extending a rally driven by artificial intelligence-related chip stocks and a strong performance on Wall Street. The index had gained more than 3.5% over the previous four trading sessions before Wednesday's pullback.

Despite the decline, the Nikkei remains near three-month highs and about 4% below its record intraday high of 72,831.73, set on June 22.

Profit-taking after a sharp run

The retreat came after a rapid climb that began last week, when strong results from U.S. memory chipmaker Micron Technology sparked a surge in Japanese semiconductor shares. The Nikkei jumped 3.3% on Oct. 1, with chip-testing equipment maker Advantest and inspection equipment maker Lasertec posting double-digit gains.

The rally continued Monday, when the index rose 2.4% after a weaker-than-expected U.S. jobs report eased expectations of further interest rate increases by the Federal Reserve. Advantest hit a record high that day, closing at 40,220 yen.

With the index pushing through........

© International Business Times