Tokyo’s markets were mixed on Wednesday’s session.

The Nikkei 225 was 0.56 percent lower to 15,358.39 and the Topix index fell 0.43 percent to 1,563.86, but the Mothers market added 2.21 percent to 923.56.

The banking sector was disturbed by the report concerning Merrill Lynch’s (NYSE: MER; TYO: 8675) writedowns.

Mitsubishi UFJ (TYO: 8306; NYSE: MTU) was down 0.8 percent to ¥1,038, while Sumitomo Mitsui (TYO: 8316) dropped 1.3 percent to ¥840,000 and Mizuho Financial (TYO: 8411; NYSE: MFG) fell 1.5 percent to ¥612,000.

Gainers on the session included Chugai Pharmaceutical (TYO: 4519), which added 5.3 percent to ¥1,897 after it reported that net income was up 8.5 percent in the third quarter.

Other gains came on broker upgrades.

Sumitomo Metal Industries (TYO: 5405) was up 2 percent to ¥601 and Sumitomo Chemical gained 4 percent to ¥1,031 after Daiwa upped its rating on the materials sector to “outperform”.

In the retail sector, Fast Retailing (TYO: 9983) jumped 6.8 percent to ¥7,040 after Merrill Lynch increased its recommendation from “neutral” to “buy”.

In Tokyo, the Nikkei 225 was 0.28 percent lower to 16,785.69 on Friday.

The Topix index closed at 1,616.62, while the Mothers market was higher, ending the session at 732.72 for a gain of 1.7 percent.

The pharmaceuticals sector was mixed.

Chugai Pharmaceutical (TYO: 4519) was 2.6 percent lower to ¥1,897 after it said it would need to extend clinical tests for a new anemia drug, while Daiichi Sankyo (TYO: 4568) gained 4.6 percent to ¥3,450 on the news that the US Food and Drug Administration approved its new blood pressure medication.

House builders were also mixed.

While Daiwa House Industry (TYO: 1925) dropped 0.1 percent to ¥1,499, Sekisui House (TYO: 1928; OTC: SKHSY) was 0.6 percent higher to ¥1,446.

In the real estate sector, Mitsubishi Estate (TYO: 8802) was down 3 percent to ¥3,290.

Consumer lender Takefuji (TYO: 8564) added 5.8 percent to ¥2,280 after it announced a share buy-back.

Camera and copier maker Canon (TYO: 7751; NYSE: CAJ) gained 2.6 percent to ¥6,270 on the possibility that it might also buy back shares.

Construction equipment manufacturer Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (TYO: 7011) was 1.9 percent higher to ¥751 on the announcement that it will supply a Chinese nuclear facility.

In Tokyo on Thursday the Nikkei 225 was 0.67 percent higher to 16,984.11 and the Topix index gained 0.03 percent to 1,669.33, but the Mothers market fell 0.21 percent to 830.18.

Gains were helped by a new report from Japan’s National Tax Agency which showed that land prices in the country were 8.6 percent higher last year, with a gain of 17 percent in Tokyo.

The report sent the real estate sector higher. Mitsui Fudosan (TYO: 8801; NAS: MDSFF) added 4.2 percent to ¥3,230, while Mitsubishi Estate (TYO: 8802) gained 6.3 percent to ¥3,200 and Tokyu Land (TYO: 8815) was up 7.9 percent to ¥1,208.

In addition, homebuilder Daiwa House Industry Co (TYO: 1925) was 4 percent higher to ¥1,570.

The retail sector also saw gains, with Fast Retailing (TYO: 9983) adding 4.8 percent to ¥6,820 on a successful bid for the Barneys New York chain of department stores, owned by Jones Apparel Group (NYSE: JNY).

Drug maker Chugai Pharmaceutical (TYO: 4519) gained 2.7 percent to ¥2,075 on an increased full-year projecting, while Astellas Pharma (TYO: 4503) was 3.1 percent higher to ¥5,050 on a fiscal first quarter net income gain of 52 percent.

In the electronics sector Pioneer (TYO: 6773) dropped 4.5 percent to ¥1,546 on a decline of 40 percent in sales of plasma televisions in the quarter, while Casio (TYO: 6952) fell 4.6 percent to ¥1,699 after it said quarterly operating profit was down 78 percent in the most recent quarter on poor sales of mobile phones.

Banks also saw declines, with Resona (TYO: 8308) down 3.3 percent to ¥238,000 and Mizuho (TYO: 8411) dropping 4.7 percent to ¥730,000.

Sell-offs in the shipping sector prevented the Tokyo equities markets from advancing on Thursday. The Nikkei 225 closed even at 17,292.48, while the Topix index closed 0.5 percent lower to 1,720.18. The Nikkei was prevent from dropping mainly by export-focused sectors which saw gains due to weakness in the yen.

The shipping sector fell 5.1 percent as a whole on the session. The declines came after Nippon Yusen, the largest shipper in Japan, cut its prediction on operating profits for its fiscal year, which ends in March. Yusen fell 7.8 percent to ¥904. The news helped send Kawasaki Kisen 4.2 percent lower to ¥1,044 even though it raised its estimate on operating profits by ¥1 billion, to ¥61 billion. Mitsui OSK Lines dropped 3.5 percent to ¥1,225.

Among export-focused sectors, electrical machinery added 0.5 percent on the day, while transport equipment gained 0.3 percent. Advantest gained 2.2 percent to ¥5,570. Honda Motor was 1.7 percent higher to ¥4,710.

The telecommunications sector was higher. KDDI added 1.8 percent to ¥925,000 after it gained the most subscribers of any Japanese telecom in the latest figures released. NTT DoCoMo gained 4.4 percent to ¥215,000.

Chugai Pharmaceutical was 6.2 percent higher to ¥2,835 on a statement from Swiss pharmaceutical company Roche that it was thinking about raising its stake. Roche already owns half of Chugai. The drug maker was also helped by an upgrade from “hold” to “buy” from Nikko Citigroup.

In Tokyo on Monday the Nikkei 225 and the Topix index each added 0.3 percent on the session, to close at 17,470.46 and 1,733.59 respectively.

Export-focused sectors benefited as the yen weakened versus the US dollar. The machinery sector gained 1.4 percent as a whole, with Komatsu ending 3.4 percent higher to ¥2,560.

The steel sector gained on the news that JFE is in talks with South Korea’s Hyundai Steel. Nippon Steel added 1 percent to ¥711, while JFE was 1.6 percent higher to ¥6,800.

Word of a bird flu outbreak in Japan translated to gains for Chugai Pharmaceutical, the manufacturer of Tamiflu, which is believed to be effective against the disease in humans. Chugai added 1.8 percent to ¥2,780 on the session.

Internet and telecommunications company Softbank added 5.6 percent to ¥2,735 on an upgrade from Credit Suisse. The broker upped its recommendation from “under perform” to “outperform” and raised its target share price from ¥1,340 to ¥3,110.

In the retail sector, news that Wal-Mart could be looking for acquisitions in Japan sent its Japanese division, Seiyu, 13.1 percent higher to ¥190 on merger hopes.

In Tokyo on Thursday, the Nikkei 225 dropped 0.3 percent to close at 17,485.30 as the yen strengthened after recent weakness. The decline came after the index achieved another six-year high early in the session. Despite this, many analysts believe that advances will be limited this year due to shares that they believe are too highly valued at present.

Some export-focused stocks were hurt by the currency’s gains. Printer and copier maker Canon fell 1.2 percent to ¥6,530. But not all exporters declined on the session. Helped by good results in tech stocks in the US, Sony added 1.6 percent to ¥5,720.

There were gains in the pharmaceuticals sector. Chugai Pharmaceutical added 6.5 percent to ¥2,715 after it announced, along with partner Roche, that studies for its new rheumatoid arthritis drug were proceeding well.

Shipper were higher after positive comments from Mizuho Securities. Mitsui OSK Lines was 1.1 percent higher to ¥1,264, while Kawasaki Kisen gained 1.15 percent to ¥1,053.

Yahoo Japan, up 1.05 percent to ¥48,250, reported that its quarterly profits were up by 20 percent.

The real estate sector, which has added more than 40 percent since last July, continued to rise even though some analysts believe that stocks are currently overvalued. Mitsui Fudosan added 1.6 percent on the session to ¥3,100.

Both the Nikkei 225 and the Topix index saw gains in Tokyo on Monday. The Nikkei added 0.7 percent to 15,456.81, while the Topix was up 0.8 percent to 1,572.01. Both domestic and export-focused sectors saw gains.

Not every sector was up, however. With chances of consolidation in the paper sector decreasing, Oji Paper and Hokuetsu Paper Mills were down on the day. Oji dropped 0.2 percent to ¥665, while Hokuetsu was 1.5 percent lower to ¥790.

The pharmaceuticals sector also saw losses. Astellas dropped 1.3 percent to ¥4,560. Chugai and Daiichi Sankyo fell by 1.9 percent each, with Chugai closing at ¥2,365 and Daiichi Sankyo ending the session at ¥3,150. Takeda was 2.4 percent lower to ¥7,400 on the news that a new cancer drug that it is developing has not shown the usefulness that had been hoped for.

The properties sector showed gains in anticipation of land prices having gone up when the National Tax Agency reports new data. Mitsubishi Estate added 1.9 percent to ¥2,375, while Mitsui Fudosan, Japan’s biggest mortgage lender, gained 2.1 percent to ¥2,435 and NTT Urban Development was 4.1 percent higher to ¥864,000.

Technology-related companies also saw advances on the day. Hitachi and Toshiba each gained 1.4 percent to ¥734 and ¥741 respectively. Elpida Memory added 2.2 percent to ¥4,590, while computer maker Fujitsu was up by 3.6 percent to ¥889.

The Tokyo equities markets were lower on Monday as export-reliant sectors saw declines on the news that China’s central bank is cutting back on lending. The announcement spurred worries that China’s economy is slowing down. The Topix index was also hurt by declines in the banking sector.

The Nikkei 225 was 0.1 percent lower to 14,860.35, while the Topix dropped 0.5 percent to 1,527.66. Meanwhile, the Mothers index of small and mid-cap stocks closed flat at 1,462.71.

Among companies hit by the news from China were smelter Mitsubishi Materials, which dropped 3 percent to ¥458 and construction machinery manufacturer Komatsu, down 3.5 percent to ¥2,075.

The electrical machinery sector dropped 0.5 percent as a sector. Among electronics companies, Hitachi was down 1.1 percent to ¥743, while Sony dropped 1.6 percent to ¥4,860. In the semiconductor sector, Advantest lost 2.6 percent to ¥10,750.

Among banks, Mizuho lost 1.9 percent to ¥875,000, while Mitsubishi UFJ declined by 2 percent to ¥1,460,000.

Pharmaceuticals and seafood companies, however, saw gains on the day. Strong export sales in the seafood sector saw Nippon Suisan add 3.1 percent to ¥589 and Maruha gain 3.5 percent to ¥325.

The pharmaceuticals sector was up 2.3 percent as a whole. Takeda added 1.7 percent to ¥6,730, Chugai was up 3.4 percent to ¥2,280, and Daiichi Sankyo gained 6.1 percent to ¥2,890.

Ishikawa Seisakusho, which manufactures defence products in addition to textiles, added 17.7 percent on the day to ¥166 as suspicions rose that North Korea is preparing to test a missile in the near future.

Equities markets in Tokyo saw substantial gains on Friday in both domestic and export-focused sectors. The Nikkei 225 ended the day 2.8 percent higher at 14,879.34, while the Topix index added 3.3 percent to 1,534.71.

The steel sector added 4.7 percent as a whole on increased demand around the world. Nippon Steel was up 3.9 percent to ¥405, while Kobe Steel and Sumitomo Metal Mining each advanced by 4.6 percent to ¥339 and ¥1,330 respectively.

Banks were up 4.3 percent as a sector on the expectation that interest rates will rise in July. Mitsubishi UFJ gained 4.2 percent to ¥1,490,000, while Mizuho Financial advanced by 4.9 percent to ¥892,000.

Mitsui Fudosan was up 3.9 percent to ¥2,295 and Daiwa House added 5.1 percent to ¥1,773 as the real estate sector as a whole added 4.1 percent.

Retail saw gains as well. Seven & I advanced by 2.2 percent to ¥3,710, while Aeon gained 4.4 percent to ¥2,500.

The pharmaceuticals sector was up, but only by 0.8 percent and results were mixed for companies within the sector. Astellas Pharmaceuticals added 1 percent to ¥4,020, but Chugai and Daiichi Sankyo lost share value, by 0.9 percent to ¥2,205 and by 2 percent to ¥2,725 respectively.

The Tokyo equities markets were down on Tuesday as domestically-oriented stocks could not sustain the gains they achieved on Monday. The Nikkei 225 ended the day down by 0.8 percent to 16,238.36, while the Topix index dropped 0.5 percent to 1,665.79.

Retail was down 0.6 percent in the sector with Seven & I down 1.3 percent to ¥4,460. In transport, East Japan Railway also lost 1.3 percent on the day to ¥861,000. The securities sector also dropped, by 0.7 percent, with Nomura down to ¥2,350.

Real estate managed slight gains, with Tokyu Land gaining 1.2 percent to ¥1,081.

Export-reliant sectors were damaged by the yen’s climb in relation to the US dollar. Electrical machinery was down 0.8 as a sector, with Elpida Memory falling 3.1 percent to ¥4,100 and Hitachi declining 0.9 percent to ¥805. Elsewhere, Toyota was down 0.3 percent to ¥6,320.

Chugai Pharmaceutical dropped 3.5 percent to ¥2,195 on a downgrade from “neutral” to “sell” from Merrill Lynch, which cited a probable drop in sales of, Epogin, an anti-anemia drug.

Rising crude oil prices helped upstream oil companies, with Japan Petroleum up 1.6 percent to ¥6,830 and Inpex up to ¥1,050,000.