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.

In the Tokyo equities markets on Tuesday both the Nikkei 225 and the Topix index dropped 0.5 percent on the session, to 16,611.59 and 1,637.95 respectively, while the Mothers index of small and mid-cap stocks dropped 0.3 percent to 1,178.26. Much of the declines were due to profit-taking after recent gains.

The consumer finance sector was mixed. Aiful added 1.4 percent to ¥4,320 and Credit Saison was 2.1 percent higher to ¥4,900. On the losing side of the ledger, Jaccs dropped 2.2 percent to ¥915, Promise was 3.7 percent lower to ¥4,200, and Takefuji fell 4.3 percent to ¥4,640.

NTT Data, the data unit of NTT, was 3.2 percent lower to ¥571,000 on a downgrade from “buy” to “neutral from Merrill Lynch after its share price met the broker’s target.

The transport equipment sector dropped 1.4 percent as the yen strengthened. Toyota declined even more than the average, falling 1.7 percent to ¥6,770.

Sony, which had rebounded somewhat recently, dropped 1.8 percent to ¥4,790, as the effect of battery recalls, delays, and a claim for damages from one laptop maker that used its batteries accumulated.

Equities markets in Tokyo were higher on Monday as investors looked for bargains. The Nikkei 225 was 0.9 percent higher to 16,692.76, while the Topix index gained 1.1 percent to 1,646.05. The Mothers index of small and mid-cap stocks also saw gains, adding 3.6 percent to 1,181.33.

Consumer finance stocks benefited from the search for good buys. Aiful was up 4.2 percent to ¥4,260 on an upgrade from “sell” to “hold” from Deutsche Securities. Jaccs, which was hurt recently by a profits warning, gained 4.5 percent to ¥936.

The retail sector was 1.4 percent higher as a whole. Seven & I added 1 percent to ¥3,920, while Aeon was 1.3 percent higher to ¥2,795 on the news that its in partnership talks with Daiei. Department store chains Daimaru and Mitsukoshi were 2.8 and 2.9 percent higher, to ¥562 and ¥413 respectively.

In the electronics sector, Sony shared in help from a weak yen, adding 2.5 percent to ¥4,880. The consumer electronics and entertainment conglomerate also benefited from an upgrade from “equal weight” to “overweight” from Morgan Stanley. Sony’s gains came even though Toshiba is asking for damages over a recall of Sony batteries used in its products.

Another export-focused company, construction equipment manufacturer Komatsu, added 1.9 percent to ¥2,180.

Declines in the banking sector sent the Tokyo equities markets lower on Thursday, with the Nikkei 225 dropping 0.2 percent to 16,368.81 and the Topix index down 0.5 percent to 1,613.64. Consumer finance companies, however, saw gains on the session.

In the consumer finance sector, Takefuji added 0.9 percent to ¥4,630, while Jaccs was 4.1 percent higher to ¥890 and Aiful advanced 4.4 percent to ¥4,020. Despite the gains in the sector, it was still down for the week.

Canon dropped 2.4 percent to ¥6,510 on a downgrade from “buy” to “hold” from Deutsche Bank, making the cut on the basis of the printer and copier maker’s rising share price. Sony, however, was 1.8 percent higher to ¥4,590 after its joint project with Ericsson to make mobile phones posted much better than expected results in the third quarter.

The banking sector saw declines on the session, falling 2.3 percent as a whole after UBS cut the ratings of several of Japan’s largest financial institutions. The reason given for the downgrades was that spreads between deposits and lending rates have not been improving quickly enough. SMFG dropped 1.6 percent to ¥1,240,000, while Mizuho Financial fell 2 percent to ¥906,000, Mitsubishi UFJ was 3.2 percent lower to ¥1,530,000, and Sumitomo Trust and Banking was off by 4.6 percent to ¥1,248.

These declines were partly offset by a 1.3 percent rise in the non-ferrous metals sector after metals prices increased. Sumitomo Metal Mining added 3.5 percent to ¥1,463.