The Tokyo equities markets were much lower on Wednesday. The Nikkei 225 dropped 515 points, or 2.85 percent, to close at 17,604, while the Topix index fell 3.23 percent to 1,752.74. At one point during the session, every stock listed on the Nikkei was in negative territory, but a few were able to make it back into positive figures by the end of the day.

Trade was suspended on the Topix index for 15 minutes early in the session when the index fell 70 points in a short period of time, triggering its “safety valve” in the event of a sudden, substantial decline. There was also a warning that if the Topix fell by 100 points below the previous close, another safety device would trigger and suspect arbitrage trading in all First Section shares. That step never had to be taken. Still, declines were sharp enough that chief cabinet secretary Yasuhisa Shiozaki said that the government was monitoring the market closely, although assurances were made that Japan’s economy was still sound.

Nikko Cordial (TYO: 8603; SGX: N06) was hurt by news reports that the Tokyo Stock Exchange was in the final stages of preparing to delist it after its recent scandals. The broker’s shares fell 14.85 percent in consequence of the rumors. Elsewhere in the securities sector, Daiwa Securities (TYO: 8601) were 5.3 percent lower to ¥1,501, while Nomura Holdings (TYO: 8604; SGX: N33; NYSE: NMR) fell 5.33 percent, to ¥2,575.

Kobe Steel (TYO: 5406) was just one of many miners and heavy industries that fell on the session, dropping 4.23 percent to ¥4.76.

Nippon Meat Packers (TYO: 2282) was one of the two companies listed on the Nikkei to end the session higher. It added 3.78 percent to ¥1,481.

The Tokyo equities markets saw gains on Monday, despite investor caution ahead of a decision on US interest rates by the US Federal Reserve and the release of the latest Tankan survey from the Bank of Japan, both due soon. Also limiting gains was a significant decline in the consumer finance sector. The Nikkei 225 and the Topix index each added 0.7 percent on the session, to 16,527.99 and 1,627.97 respectively.

The consumer finance sector’s declines came after UBS forecast that lending would be down b y 30 percent in the next three years. Aiful dropped 3.4 percent to ¥3,660, while Takefuji fell 4 percent to ¥4,530 and Acom was 6 percent lower to ¥4,260.

In the tobacco sector, Japan Tobacco added 2.9 percent to ¥566,000, the third session of gains in a row for the company, as talk continued concerning its bid for UK tobacco company Gallaher.

Consolidator rumors sent the steel sector higher on the session even though some analysts see a successful hostile takeover of any Japanese steel company as only a slight possibility. Kobe Steel added 2.3 percent to ¥402, while Sumitomo Metal Industries gained 3.2 percent to ¥482. JFE was 3.8 percent higher to ¥5,720 and Nippon Steel was up 4 percent to ¥570.

The automobile manufacturing sector saw gains on a weakening yen. Toyota gained 1.4 percent to ¥7,140, while Honda Motor added 1.7 percent to ¥4,140.

Meanwhile the Osaka-listed games company Nintendo added 3.5 percent to ¥28,650 on data showing that sales of its Wii video game console are booming in the US.

Equities markets in Tokyo were slightly lower on Monday on declines in the securities and steel sectors. Semiconductors were down as well, while electronics were mixed and paper and pulp saw increases during the day. The Nikkei 225 fell 0.2 percent to 14,794.5, while the Topix index was down 0.1 percent to 1,514.22.

The steel sector was especially hard hit. Japan Steel Works fell just 0.2 percent to ¥656, while Kobe Steel dropped 3 percent to ¥326 and JFE was down by 4.6 percent to ¥4,380. Tokyo Steel, hurt by a quarterly report that showed earnings down 42.6 percent in the quarter, declined by 17.1 percent to ¥1,945.

The semiconductor sector was hurt by a profit warning from computer maker Dell. Advantest fell 1.4 percent to ¥10,930, while Tokyo Electron dropped 3.8 percent to ¥7,120.

Among electronics companies, Sony was down 0.6 percent to ¥4,810 and NEC fell by 2.1 percent to ¥566. On the other hand, Matsushita Electric Industrial gained 2.7 percent to ¥2,245, while Sharp was up 4.4 percent to ¥1,836.

The securities sector saw losses after Goldman Sachs issued a reduced forecast for the sector as a whole in the wake of first-quarter earnings reports from the four largest brokerages in Japan. Nomura fell 0.3 percent to ¥2,015, while Mitsubishi UFJ Securities was down 1.5 percent to ¥1,273 and Daiwa Securities was 2.7 percent lower to ¥1,226.

Prospects for consolidation sent the paper and pulp sector higher after Oji Paper made an unsolicited offer for Hokuetsu Paper Mills. Hokuetsu, in an effort to fend off the bid, offered to sell 50 million new shares to Mitsubishi Paper Mills. The news sent Oji Paper 2.3 percent higher to ¥656, while Mitsubishi Paper Mills was up 9.8 percent to ¥224 and Hokuetsu added 15.8 percent to ¥735.

The Tokyo equities markets were a bit higher on Monday as good performance in the real estate sector outweighed fears in the consumer finance sector that new, more stringent rules may be imposed on such lenders. The Nikkei 225 and the Topix index each added 0.2 percent to 15,152.40 and 1,548.97 respectively. The only exception was the Mothers index of small and mid-cap stocks, which dropped 1.7 percent to 1,419.20.

The news that European steel company Arcelor has agreed to a revised bid from Mittal Steel helped the iron and steel sector was up 1.6 as a whole. JFE was up 1.3 percent to ¥4,580, while Nippon Steel gained 1.7 percent to ¥417 and Kobe Steel added 2.7 percent to ¥340.

The real estate sector gained 1.8 percent overall as it continued to benefit from higher commercial property rents in the cities. Mitsui Fudosan was up 1.9 percent to ¥2,400. Mitsubishi Estate and Tokyo Tatemono each added 2.8 percent, to ¥2,365 and ¥1,162, while Sumitomo Realty and Development advanced by 3 percent to ¥2,750 and NTT Urban Development gained 4.3 percent to ¥857,000.

Consumer finance companies saw losses on the day on reports that government regulators are considering strict rules to help borrowers avoid taking on more debt than they can afford. Acom dropped 1.4 percent to ¥6,170, Promise declined by 1.8 percent to ¥6,430, and Aiful was down by 1.8 percent to ¥5,770.

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.