The Weekend Is Over, And Markets And Futures Are Mostly Higher

Rob Wile

Dec 9, 2013, 05:54 IST

REUTERS/Lee Jae-Won

An investor looks at a board showing the stock price index at a brokerage firm in Seoul October 16, 2008. Seoul shares fell more than 9 percent that day, posting its biggest daily percentage loss in seven years, as the grim world economic outlook and the overnight Wall Street crash made investors dump shares across the board. The Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) officially ended down 9.44 percent at 1,213.78 points, its lowest close since mid-June 2006.

Asia and Pacific markets were mostly higher as Monday trading opened.

Korea's Kospi and Japan's Nikkei both climbed more than 1%. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 was off 0.2%.

U.S. futures were pointing higher, led by the NASDAQ at 0.2%.

We just got some economic data out of Japan, which showed Q3 GDP was revised down to 1.1% from 1.9%, while swinging to a current account deficit, "as its massive goods and services trade deficit eradicated the benefits of solid income from overseas investment," Marketwatch's Mitsuru Obe writes.

But the Yen climbed just 0.06% against the dollar.

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