Nintendo Switch 2 reveal can’t save Japanese stock market from plummeting, following Trump tariff chaos
Video game companies have been hit hard in Japan
The Japanese stock market has taken a significant hit following last week’s economic turmoil in the wake of US President Donald Trump’s newly imposed tariffs. Nintendo, Sony, and more have been affected.
As the markets closed in Japan on Monday, most Japanese video game firms were down in trading, with Nintendo falling a huge 7.85%. Sony dropped even further, closing at -10.04%. Capcom closed at -6.61%, with Square Enix down by -5.62% at closing.
The sharp decline can be attributed to US President Donald Trump’s new tariffs. Under this new plan, Japan would be hit with 24% tariffs on exported goods to the United States, including video game consoles.
Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has said that his government is preparing to negotiate with the US to lessen the impact of Trump’s tariffs, but that it would take time.
“When we negotiate with the US we want to present a package. That will take some time, but we will make it a success,” Ishiba told reporters over the weekend.
Nintendo’s newly revealed Nintendo Switch 2 is expected to be hit hard by the tariffs, so much so that Nintendo has delayed Switch 2 pre-orders in the US, stating that it wanted to “assess market conditions.”
A report from the Financial Times last month suggested that Nintendo had already been shifting production away from China since Trump’s first administration stated its intent to upend global trading, noting that more than half of the hardware Nintendo imports into the US comes from Vietnam and Cambodia.
However, the tariffs imposed by Trump on Wednesday – which he says will go into effect on April 9 – include a 46% tariff on Vietnam and a 49% tariff on Cambodia.
Last Wednesday, Nintendo announced its global pricing plans for the Nintendo Switch 2. The standalone Nintendo Switch 2 console will cost $449.99 / €469.99 / £395.99. The bundle version, which includes a digital version of Mario Kart World, will cost $499.99 / €509.99 / £429.99.
In Japan, the situation is somewhat different. There, players will be able to buy the Switch 2 from retail stores for 49,980 ($334), but this version will be region locked to Japan. This ‘domestic only’ console will only have Japanese as the console’s language option, and the only Nintendo account that can be linked to it will be one created with the country/region setting set to Japan.
