May 0.80st is a quiet day, even on the Asian markets (China, Hong Kong, India, South Korea and Singapore are closed), but something is happening anyway. A strengthening of the yen below 53.1 against the dollar hurt the Tokyo stock exchange. The PMI for China was released this morning, and improved from 53.6 to 50, above the XNUMX level that separates expansion from recession - another sliver of statistical evidence that China's slowdown is more physiological than pathological. The (remaining) Asian equity index is slightly negative but hardly significant under these circumstances.
In Australia, monetary policy easing has become a reality. Australia has always had one of the highest key interest rates among advanced countries, but this rate (cash rate) had decreased from 6% in October 2008 to 3% in April 2009, only to then rise again to 4.75% in November 2010. Six months ago a new waning phase began, sealed today by a drop of half a point, to 3.75%, at the high limit of what the markets expected. And the stock market reacted positively, with an increase of around 1%.
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