The MSCI Asia Pacific regional index rallied on some good fourth-quarter earnings news for US companies. The bulk of the announcements are yet to come, but Alcoa and Monsanto have surprised to the top.
In Japan, the ups and downs of Tokyo are in direct relationship with the yen these days. Today the Japanese currency, which had risen to 87, fell again to 87,5 ('rising' and 'falling' refer to appreciation and depreciation and go in the opposite direction to the quotation against the dollar). This was enough to give exporters' shares a boost, which had fallen over the past two days as the devaluation of the yen appeared to stall if not reverse. The Nikkei 225 index is now in bull territory, having risen 21% since November 14, when the opposition leader - now prime minister - announced plans to use unconventional measures to stimulate the Japanese economy.
The euro recovered slightly and is aiming for 1,31 while oil is still at 93 $/b. Gold, after the falls of recent weeks, stabilized around 1760 $/ounce.
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-01-09/asian-stocks-decline-as-japanese-exporters-fall-on-yen.html
