The Japanese market is still closed, but in the rest of Asia the mood of the markets is turning bleak, even if the mood is one of waiting for the data on jobs in America which will be available in the early afternoon. The regional index excluding Japan fell by 0,7%, although the Shanghai stock market is still rising, driven by the 'market friendly' moves we reported yesterday. An index of the cost of insuring against Asian bond defaults – the Markit iTraxx Asia index – rose amid uncertainty about the strength of the recovery.
The real economy is the key to the next moves of the markets, e it didn't help that the Reserve Bank lowered its growth estimates for Australia, which implies a lower absorption of raw materials of which the country is a major exporter and therefore a judgment of economic slowdown in the large Asian neighbours. Prices of copper, aluminum and gold are down, as are oil, which is around $102 a barrel from its recent high of $105.
