Japan Weaker, Asia & U.S. Volatile This Week Updated: 5/29/2013
Japan is weaker, Asia and the U.S. are volatile this week as global markets adjust to central bank actions. Asian stocks sold off for the week after a 7% drop in Japanese share prices last Tuesday sparked selling in the region. The sell-off was attributed to the Chinese Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) and concerns about the U.S. Federal Reserve changing its current easing policies sooner than expected. While shares recovered some of the gains the following day, stocks in the region have been volatile. The NASDAQ ASPA INDEX (NQASPA) fell 4.9% over the past five days.
“Markets that are fueled to some degree by central banker actions can be subject to quick reversals with sudden changes in sentiment, especially if the underlying fundamentals have not been altered by the central bank’s actions,” said Dave Gedeon, Managing Director, NASDAQ OMX Global Indexes. “The sell-off in Japan last week is evidence of the velocity of moves in stocks, even if news is presumed to be priced in. With that being said, Japan’s outsized move did not have a significant impact on other markets, as the U.S. remained relatively flat during this period.”
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