In Tokyo on Thursday the markets were higher after the Bank of Japan voted 8 to 1 to hold interest rates at 0.5 percent, as expected.

The Nikkei 225 gained 2.6 percent to 16,316.32, while the Taiex added 3 percent to 1,591.81 and the Mothers market jumped 5.18 percent to 740.02.

Exporters were higher as the yen weakened.

Among carmakers, Toyota Motor (TYO: 7203.T; NYSE: TM; LSE: TYT) was up 2 percent to ¥6,680 and Honda Motor (TYO: 7267; NYSE: HMC) gained 2.5 percent to ¥6,260.

Tire maker Bridgestone (TYO: 5108) added 5.6 percent to ¥2,445 after it said it will boost production in Indonesian and Indian factories to satisfy demand.

Among trading companies, Mitsubishi Corp (TYO: 8058; OTC: MSBHY) was up 7.2 percent to ¥3,110 on the announcement of a share buy-back worth ¥150.1 billion, while Mitsui & Co (TYO: 8031) gained 6.8 percent to ¥2,365.

The banking sector added 4.6 percent as a whole, with Mitsubishi UFJ (TYO: 8306; NYSE: MTU) up 4.6 percent to ¥1,130,000 as Mizuho Financial (TYO: 8411; NYSE: MFG) added 5.2 percent to ¥715,000 and Sumitomo Mitsui (TYO: 8316) gained 5.5 percent to ¥933,000.

Tokyo equities markets moved very little on Tuesday after Monday’s declines. Banks were still weak, but the consumer finance and electronics sectors saw gains. The Nikkei 225 added 0.1 percent to 15,734.14, while the Topix index dropped 0.1 percent to 1,532.95.

Bridgestone dropped 1.6 percent to ¥2,405 in reaction to Monday’s announcement by the tire maker that it is putting off its earnings target by another two years and will not reach the goal of 5 percent net profit margins until at least 2010.

Banks were hurt by data showing that core operations were hurt by lending margins that had tightened. Mizuho Financial was 2.2 percent lower to ¥805,000.

On the other hand, consumer finance were higher as some investors and hedge funds have begun to consider them to be bargains. Within the sector, Takefuji added 1.1 percent to ¥4,010.

The shipping sector did will on lower oil prices overnight, with Nippon Yusen gaining 2.1 percent to ¥768. The drop in oil prices did not help oil company Inpex, which dropped 0.7 percent to ¥896,000.

Tech sectors saw gains on the session, with Tokyo Electron adding 0.4 percent to ¥8,600. Among semiconductors, Advantest was 1.4 percent higher to ¥5,950.

The Tokyo equities markets were lower on Thurdsay, with both the Nikkei 225 and the Topix index dropping 0.2 percent, to 16,350.02 and 1,619.02 respectively. Both export-focused and domestic sectors were instrumental in the declines.

Stocks in technology sectors were hit by bad news out of the United States, including declines in the semiconductors sector and weak manufacturing figures for October. Advantest dropped 1 percent to ¥5,750. In the electronics sector, Matsushita dropped 1.6 percent to ¥2,415, while Pioneer fell 2.9 percent to ¥1,791. Camera manufacturer Canon, meanwhile, was 0.5 percent lower to ¥6,280.

Sectors related to metals were lower on dropping prices for raw materials, as both the non-ferrous metals and metals products sectors were 0.4 percent lower on the session. Sumitomo Metal Mining dropped 1.4 percent to ¥1,530.

The real estate sector was 0.5 percent lower as a whole, with Mitsui Fudosan falling 0.7 percent to ¥2,860.

Gainers included Suzuki Motor, which added 2.4 percent to ¥3,420 on a positive quarterly report and an upgraded full-year prediction.

Bridgestone was even on the day at ¥2,445 on a report of a decline of 34 percent in operating profits in the third quarter. Higher raw materials prices were to blame. The tire maker’s share price was initially lower after the report, but an unchanged full-year forecast helped regain the losses.

Lower than expected profits reports from consumer finance companies sent Tokyo equities markets lower on Wednesday. The Nikkei 225 was 0.8 percent lower to 14,884.07, while the Topix index was down by 0.9 percent to 1,520.44

Consumer finance was not the only sector with losses, however. The electronics sector was down, with NEC falling 0.2 percent to ¥578 and Matsushita Electric Industrial down 0.4 percent to ¥578 even though the two announced they were embarking on a joint venture to develop mobile phone software in an effort to cut costs. Sony dropped 0.6 percent to ¥4,910, while Sharp fell 1.4 percent to ¥1,865 even though it reported operating profits that were up 14 percent.

The high cost of raw materials sent tire maker Bridgestone down by 2.6 percent to ¥2,030.

In the consumer finance sector, Acom dropped 2.8 percent to ¥5,180. Takefuji was down 4.2 percent to ¥5,460, Promise was down 5.3 percent to ¥5,150, and Aiful was 7.6 percent lower to ¥4,230. Sanyo Shinpan was by far the biggest loser in the sector, with a decline of 14.6 percent to ¥4,510 after it said its quarterly earnings were down by 47 percent.

The paper and pulp sector was mixed, with Oji Paper up 1.4 percent to ¥672 but Hokuetsu Paper Mills 2.7 percent lower to ¥768. Hokuetsu is in the process of trying to repel a takeover attempt from Oji.

The Tokyo equities markets were substantially lower on Wednesday as manufacturers felt the impact of rising prices for raw materials and as investors continued to worry about US interest rates. The Nikkei 225 was down 1.9 percent to 14,886.11, while the Topix index declined by 1.4 percent to 1,527.51.

Tiremaker Bridgestone dropped 4.3 percent to ¥2,140 after it said that rising raw materials prices were forcing it to cut its 2006-2007 profits forecast. Yokohama Rubber fell by 2.8 percent to ¥488, while Sumitomo Rubber declined by 4.4 percent to ¥1,208.

Chemical stocks were also hit by higher raw materials costs as the price of naphtha hit record highs in Asia. Nissan Chemical Industries was down 3.8 percent to ¥1,379, while Mitsui Chemicals declined by 6.8 percent to ¥704.

The export-focused automobile manufacturing sector saw losses as concerns continued about the state of the US economy. Toyota was down 1.9 percent to ¥5,700. Nissan dropped 2.3 percent to ¥1,183 after issuing warnings of poor domestic sales and rising materials costs, while Honda fell 2.5 percent to ¥3.530.

The securities sector was down 2.7 percent as a whole. Nomura declined by 3.1 percent to ¥2,035, while Nikko Cordial dropped 3.5 percent to ¥1,436 and Kabu.com fell 6.3 percent to ¥207,000.

Tokyo equities markets were up on Wednesday despite early losses. The Nikkei 225, which was down by over 4 percent on Tuesday, added 0.6 percent to 14,309.56, while the Topix index gained 0.5 percent to 1,466.14. Meanwhile, the Mothers index of small and mid-cap stocks was up 3.7 percent to 1,394.09.

The transport equipment sector added 0.9 percent as a whole. Honda was up 0.7 percent to ¥6,790, while Toyota gained 1.1 percent to ¥5,590 and Mazda advanced by 2.5 percent to ¥618.

An expected decline in rubber prices spurred Goldman Sachs to recommend both Sumitomo Rubber, which it just began covering, and tyre maker Bridgestone. Sumitomo Rubber added 8.2 percent to ¥1,271, while Bridgestone advanced by 1.1 percent to ¥2,190.

Another export-focused sector, electronics, gained 0.6 percent on the day. Mitsubishi Electric added 1 percent to ¥844, while Matsushita Electric Industrial was up 1.4 percent to ¥2,245.

Retailers were up 0.5 percent on the day as a sector, with Aeon advancing by 3.7 percent on the day after recent losses.

In the telecommunications sector, KDDI dropped 1.2 percent to ¥661,000 after it said that personal information on approximately 4 million customers had been disclosed.