Tokyo’s markets were higher Thursday.

The Nikkei 225 gained 0.89 percent to 17,106.09 and the Topix index was 1.09 percent higher to 1,617.75, while the Mothers market jumped 7.22 percent to 883.84.

Banks and brokers were higher after US bank JPMorgan Chase (NYSE: JPM; TYO: 8634) reported quarterly profits that were better than had been expected.

Mitsubishi UFJ (TYO: 8306; NYSE: MTU) added 2.3 percent to ¥1,040, while Sumitomo Mitusi (TYO: 8316) gained 3 percent to ¥848,000 and Mizuho Financial Group (TYO: 8411; NYSE: MFG) was 3.8 percent higher to ¥630,000.

Broker Nomura (TYO: 8604; NYSE: NMR; SGX: N33) was up 1.5 percent to ¥1,984 and credit card issuer Credit Saison (TYO: 8253) added 2.5 percent to ¥3,230.

Exporters did better after the yen weakened in relation to the US dollar.

Camera maker Canon (TYO: 7751; NYSE: CAJ) gained 2.7 percent to ¥6,100.

Retailers saw declines after the International Monetary Fund cut its prediction of Japanese economic growth from 2.6 percent to 2 percent for this year and from 2 percent to 1.7 percent for next year.

Departments store operator J. Front Retailing (TYO: 3086) dropped 2 percent to ¥1,026 while Seven & I (TYO: 3382) fell 2.2 percent to ¥2,870.

Tokyo’s markets were mixed Monday.

While the Nikkei 225 gained 0.21 percent to 16,800.05, the Topix index dropped 0.08 percent to 1,632.64.

The Mothers market of small and mid-caps was up 0.65 percent to 767.49.

Shares related to commodities were higher during the day.

Sumitomo Metal Mining (TYO: 5405) gained 4.4 percent to ¥2,380, while metals smelter Mitsubishi Materials (TYO: 5711) was 9.8 percent higher to ¥639.

After losing 17 percent last week, Cosmo Oil (TYO: 5007) was up 4.2 percent to ¥547.

Shippers were up as well.

Mitsui OSK Lines (TYO: 9104) gained 1.5 percent to ¥1,623, while Kawasaki Kisen (TYO: 9107) added 3.9 percent to ¥1,485.

On the other hand, financial services and the retail sector were both lower.

Sumitomo Mitusi Financial Group (TYO: 8316) dropped 1.2 percent to ¥988,000, while insurer Mitsui Sumitomo (TYO: 8752) was 4.6 percent lower to ¥1,364.

Credit card issuer Credit Saison (TYO: 8253) was 5.3 percent lower to ¥2,840 after it said that it has seen costs related to bad loans go up by 41 percent.

In the retail sector, Aeon (TYO: 8267) was down 5.3 percent to ¥1,857, while electronics retailer Yamada Denki (TYO: 9831) fell 6.8 percent to ¥11,640.

Tokyo markets were higher as the Nikkei 225 and the Topix index each added 0.3 percent, to 18,221.48 and 1,788.16 respectively.

However, the consumer finance sector there saw declines on media reports that many borrowers are asking for refunds of overcharges on loan interest.

Promise (TYO: 8574) fell 2.4 percent to ¥3,710, while Aiful (TYO: 8515) was 4 percent lower to ¥3,360 and Acom (TYO: 8572; OTC: ACMU) dropped 4.1 percent to ¥4,250.

Bucking the trend was Credit Saison (TYO: 8253), which added 1.3 percent to ¥3,200.

The retail sector added 0.8 percent as a whole, with Aeon (TYO: 8267) up 0.9 percent to ¥2,310. Seven & I (TYO: 3382) gained 2.6 percent to ¥3,600 on an upgrade from “neutral” to “buy” from Merrill Lynch (NYSE: MER; TYO: 8675).

In the electronics sector, Matsushita Electric Industrial (TYO: 6572; NYSE: MC) was 0.4 percent higher to ¥2,445, while Nintendo (TYO: 7974; NAS: NTDOY; FWB: NTO) gained 0.5 percent to ¥48,250 and Sony (TYO: 6758; NYSE: SNE) added 2.4 percent to ¥6,460 after recent declines due to poor sales of its PlayStation 3 games console.

The Tokyo equities markets were lower on Wednesday as both domestic and export-reliant sectors saw declines. The Nikkei 225 and the Topix index each dropped 1.7 percent to 16,946.89 and 1,663.

Domestically, the consumer finance sector was mixed when Citigroup said it would close 80 percent of its consumer finance branches in the nation, citing expectations that profitability will decline. While Credit Saison added 1.1 percent to ¥4,560, Takefuji dropped 1.3 percent to ¥5,200.

Japan Airlines was 3.1 percent higher to ¥232 after it said it will record ¥25 billion in extraordinary profit in the fiscal year ending March 31. The air carrier attributed this to a decline in pension obligations.

In the electronics sector, Sony was down 2 percent to ¥5,440 despite receiving a broker upgrade on Tuesday. Matsushita Electric Industrial fell 3.6 percent to ¥2,290 on the news that it will open a new plasma display factory which will cost it $2.4 billion. Some analysts feel that the move is not cost-effective.

The oil sector declined due to the falling price of crude oil. Inpex dropped 2 percent to ¥909,000, while Nippon Oil fell 4 percent to ¥772, hurt not only by lower oil prices but also by a downgrade from Morgan Stanley, which dropped its recommendation from “equal weight” to “underweight”. Bucking the trend, Idemitsu Kosan added 0.2 percent to ¥10,880 as Mitsubishi UFJ Securities began coverage of the oil refiner by setting a target share price of ¥12,500.

The Tokyo equities markets were higher on Tuesday, with the Nikkei 225 adding 0.9 percent to 17,237.77 and the Topix index gaining 1 percent to 1,692.12. On the other hand, the Mothers market of small and mid-caps saw a loss, dropping 1.3 percent to 1,073.36.

The steel sector added 3 percent as a whole on bids speculation. Nippon Steel added 3.3 percent to ¥649, while JFE Holdings was 4.9 percent higher to ¥5,980.

The electronics sector was up on positive broker comment. Pioneer was up 4 percent to ¥1,716 after Goldman Sachs issued an upgrade from “sell” to “neutral” for the audio equipment manufacturer. Goldman Sachs also upgraded Sony, from “neutral” to “buy”, based on strong Christmas sales for the consumer electronics firm. Sony added 6.5 percent to ¥5,550.

Banks saw gains on the possibility that the Bank of Japan will raise interest rates when it meets next week, on the theory that lending margins might improve if rates go up. Mitsubishi UFJ gained 1.3 percent to ¥1,510,000, while Mizuho Financial added 2.3 percent to ¥880,000.

The consumer finance sector was up on the session. Aiful was up 2.7 percent to ¥3,820, while Takefuji gained 3.5 percent to ¥5,270 and Credit Saison was 5.1 percent higher to ¥4,510.

Securities house Nikko Cordial was still seeing fallout from its recent accounting troubles, dropping 2 percent to ¥1,275.

Weakness in the yen helped the Tokyo equities markets to make gains on Thursday. However, advances were limited on the Nikkei because of a scandal in the consumer finance sector. The Nikkei 225 closed at 17,047.83, a gain of 0.2 percent, while the Topix index added 0.3 percent to 1,671.30.

Export-focused sectors were especially helped by the weak yen. Toyota added 1.7 percent to ¥7,680, while construction equipment manufacturer Komatsu gained 3.4 percent to ¥2,410.

The utilities sector also saw gains again, as the sector has gained 17.5 percent since the end of September on high dividend payments to shareholders. Tokyo Electric Power was 1 percent higher to ¥3,910 and Kansai Electric Power was up 1.6 percent to ¥3,260.

The steel sector advanced on positive comments from Merrill Lynch and on the possibility of further consolidation in the sector worldwide. Nippon Steel gained 0.5 percent to ¥601 on rumors that it will gain control of Brazilian steel company Usiminas. Meanwhile, Sumitomo Metal Industries added 4.9 percent to ¥493 on a Merrill Lynch upgrade from “neutral” to “buy”.

Consumer finance companies were affected by a 12-day business suspension of Sanyo Shinpan for improper practices. Shinpan dropped 5.5 percent to ¥3,260, while Aiful fell 5.1 percent to ¥3,360 and Credit Saison was 2.7 percent lower to ¥4,020.

In the securities sector, Nikko Cordial began a comeback after being fined for accounting irregularities, adding 7.1 percent to ¥1,237.

The Nikkei 225 and the Topix index both saw gains on Wednesday as export-focused stocks were up, but gains were limited by declines in utilities and in the consumer finance sector. The Nikkei added 0.3 percent to 16,692.93, while the Topix gained 0.2 percent to 1,639.19. Meanwhile, the Mothers index of small and mid-cap stocks dropped 1.1 percent to 1,125.85.

In the retail sector, department stores saw gains but weren’t able to lift the sector as a whole. Takashimaya was 1.1 percent higher to ¥1,717, while Isetan ended 1.6 percent higher to ¥2,150. On the other hand, Seven & I dropped 0.6 percent to ¥3,630.

Exporters that saw gains included Canon, which added 1.1 percent to ¥6,540. In the electronics sector, Sony was 1.9 percent higher to ¥4,880. Sharp, however, dropped 1.5 percent to ¥2,040 on the news that it is being investigated for price fixing of liquid crystal displays.

Utilities were down on profit-taking. Tokyo Electric Power fell 0.5 percent to ¥3,720, while Kansai Electric Power and Tohoku Electric Power each dropped 0.7 percent to ¥3,050 and ¥2,895 respectively.

The consumer finance sector declined after parliament passed a bill that will cut the maximum amount of interest the lenders can charger their customers. Takefuji was 1.1 percent lower to ¥4,470, while Aiful fell 1.6 percent to ¥3,610 and Credit Saison dropped 1.9 percent to ¥4,100.

Tokyo equities markets were higher on Thursday even though the non-ferrous metals sector declined by 0.4 percent after commodities prices fell in the overnight hours. The Nikkei 225 added 0.6 percent to 16,473.36, while the Topix index gained 0.5 percent to 1,622.77.

The recent advances in the consumer finance sector seemed to be slowing down. Takefuji remained steady at ¥4,770 and Credit Saison was 0.9 percent higher to ¥4,300. Only Aiful managed a significant gain, adding 4.1 percent to ¥3,850.

Two companies made their trading debuts on the session, but both IPOs suffered losses on their first day. Independent investment research business Japaninvest debuted with an IPO price fo ¥150,000 but closed down to ¥135,000. Meanwhile, internet service provider Nifty’s IPO price was ¥210,000; it ended the session at ¥203,000.

In the telecommunications sector, results were mixed. KDDI added 0.3 percent to ¥784,000, but Softbank dropped 0.4 percent to ¥3,475 and NTT DoCoMo fell 1.1 percent to ¥180,000 on the news that it has lost subscribers for the first time.

Among companies that deal in non-ferrous metals, Toho Zinc dropped 0.4 percent to ¥979, while Sumitomo Metal Mining fell 0.7 percent to ¥1,524 and Mitsui Mining $ Smelting was 1.3 percent lower to ¥551.

The Nikkei 225 closed at 16,371.28 on Wednesday, a gain of 0.7 percent on the session and its highest close in a month. The Topix index was also higher, ending 1 percent higher to 1,615.17. Meanwhile, the Mothers index of small and mid-cap stocks was 1 percent higher to 1,116.51. The gains were largely on advances in domestic sectors.

The securities sector was 1.7 percent higher as a whole, helped by gains in stocks that have brokers convinced that individual investors will come back to the market. Nomura Holdings and Nikko Cordial each matched the sector by adding 1.7 percent on the session, to ¥2,080 and ¥1,477 respectively. Daiwa Securities gained 2.3 percent to ¥1,335.

Real estate also did well, with the sector adding 1.5 percent. Sumitomo Realty & Development was 1.6 percent higher to ¥3,790. Mitsui Fudosan added 1.8 percent to ¥2,835, bringing its gains since the middle of June to over 30 percent.

Electricity generators were up substantially. Tohoku Electric Power gained 2.3 percent to ¥2,845, while Kyushu Electric Power was 3 percent higher to ¥3,050 and Kansai Electric Power added 3.3 percent to ¥3,120.

The consumer finance sector was still on the rise. Jaccs gained 2.2 percent to ¥827, Takefuji added 2.6 percent to ¥4,770, Credit Saison was up 3.4 percent to ¥4,260, and Promise was 3.9 percent higher to ¥4,000.

Tokyo’s major stock indices were nearly unchanged on Monday, with the Nikkei 225 slightly lower and the Topix index slightly higher. However, the Mothers index of small and mid-cap stocks continued its gains with as it gained 1.1 percent to 1,158.58. The Nikkei closed 0.1 percent lower to 16,303.59, while the Topix added .2 percent to 1,607.74.

Domestic sectors were generally higher. Real estate was 1.5 percent higher as a sector, with Mitsui Fudosan gaining 1.1 percent to ¥2,780 and Mitsubishi Estate adding 1.7 percent to ¥2,960.

The consumer finance sector was also higher as it continues to come back from the imposition of a government cap on the amount of interest lenders can charge their customers. Credit Saison added 2.2 percent to ¥4,190, while Promise gained 3.3 percent to ¥4,020. Takefuji was 3.5 percent higher to ¥4,740 and Aiful was up 5.4 percent to ¥3,880.

Nippon Steel added 1.3 percent to ¥528 when it said it is thinking about purchasing a stake in China’s largest steel company, Baosteel.

Nissan Motor was lower, dropping 1.4 percent to ¥1,393 after it said November sales were down in both the domestic market and in the United States.

Tech sectors also saw declines after the Nasdaq Composite dropped last week in the US. Semiconductor-related Advantest was 0.8 percent lower to ¥6,030. In the electronics sector, Sony dropped 1.5 percent to ¥4,550.