Asia-Pacific stock markets positive on US data, euro drops on debt fears

The optimism following the data on the slowdown in the US labor market favored Asia and the Pacific, but the fall of the euro to a 17-month low against the dollar due to the alarm over public debt reduces futures for Europe and the USA. Tokyo (+2.4%) and Taiwan (+2.55%) were brilliant, Shanghai and Seoul were closed for holidays, while Hong Kong (-0.02%), Mumbai (+0.34%) and Singapore (+0.31%) were still open.

Futures for Europe are mixed, those for the USA are negative.

Crude oil fell (WTI -1.33% to 89.9 dollars per barrel and Brent -0.9% to 101.33 dollars per barrel). Gas rises (+1.34% to 75.78 euros per MWh), while gold declines (-0.79% to 4,150.3 dollars per ounce). At 17-month highs, the dollar was just above 1.11 against the euro, weak at 157.7 yen and rising to 1.32 against the pound.

The Japanese manufacturing PMI index was below expectations at 52.5 points. Those from Spain, Italy, France, Germany, the United Kingdom and the Eurozone are arriving and, in the afternoon, the USA one, together with the ISM indices.

Stocks in the semiconductor sector performed brilliantly on the Tokyo stock exchange, from Renesas (+7.64%) to Disco (+6.1%) and Tokyo Electron (+5.2%). Electronics did well with Tdk (+7.04%), Kyocera (+5.43%) and Fujifilm (+2.5%), the automotive sectors Toyota (+1.3%) and Mitsubishi (+1.87%) and the banking sectors Nomura (+1.33%) and Mitsubishi Ufj (+2%) performed well.