Tokyo retailers see gains

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.