Morning Economic News - Tuesday February 3, 2009

Commentary and Overnight Trading

Bad news Monday brought a down stock market (except the NASDAQ) and overnight trading looks to be adding to the losses with Dow Jones Industrial Average, S&P 500 and NASDAQ futures all trading down. There was actually some good news buried in the numbers themselves yesterday. The Purchasing Managers Index still shows manufacturing activity contracting, but at a slower pace than December and the same report showed inventories falling faster. Falling inventories mean a shorter time until at least some of those inventories will have to be replenished, so quicker depletion is a good sign for the economy. The Conference Board reported very bad news on online job ads with roughly a million less vacancies advertised in January compared to October. What they didn't put in the headline was that the January 2009 number was virtually identical to the January 2008, calling into question whether the big drop may be a flaw in their seasonal adjustment. Personal spending fell again, but real disposable personal income rose another 0.3% in December, bringing further relief to the 93% of consumers with jobs.

Asian markets are following a down Monday with a slightly down Tuesday. Oil has regained a little less than 1/3 of Monday's losses. The dollar is up against the yen and the pound, down against the euro and the Canadian dollar.

Monday's Economic Numbers

Construction Spending - December 2008

• Monthly Change: Down 1.4%


• Year-to-year Change: Down 3.6%

Help Wanted Online Data Series - January 2009

• Monthly Change: Down 15% (Not seasonally adjusted)


• Year-to-year Change: Down 0.3% (10,200 fewer job ads)

Manufacturing Report on Business - January 2009

• Purchasing Managers Index (PMI): 35.6


• 50+ represents growing economic conditions


• Monthly Change: Up 2.7

Personal Income and Outlays - December 2008

• Personal Income: Down $25.3 billion


• Monthly Change: Down 0.2%


• Real Disposable Personal Income: Up 0.3%

What I'm Reading

Consumers Keep Recovery at Bay

U.S. manufacturing activity contracted at a slower rate
than expected, but steep declines in consumer spending suggest a
recovery in that sector is premature.

Australia Cuts Key Rate to 45-Year-Low 3.25% as Government Boosts Spending Australia’s central bank cut its
benchmark interest rate to the lowest level in 45 years and the
government announced it will spend a further A$42 billion ($27
billion) to ward off a recession.

Bank of Japan to Buy Shares in Companies Held by Banks to Shore Up Capital The Bank of Japan will buy 1 trillion
yen ($11.1 billion) of shares owned by financial institutions to
shore up their capital, which has been decimated by the global
stock-market rout.

Homeowners in U.S. Lost $3.3 Trillion in Property Value in 2008 Amid Slump The U.S. housing market lost $3.3
trillion in value last year and almost one in six owners with
mortgages owed more than their homes were worth as the economy
went into recession, Zillow.com said.

Pending U.S. Home Resales Probably Unchanged, Signaling Slump to Persist The number of Americans signing
contracts to buy previously owned homes was probably unchanged
in December, snapping a three-month drop, economists said
before a report today.

South Korea's Economy Will Shrink 4% in 2009 and Rebound in 2010, IMF Says The International Monetary Fund
expects South Korea’s economy will contract this year for the
first time since the Asian financial crisis a decade ago,
according to a statement from the nation’s finance ministry.

Rupee to Strengthen This Quarter on India Growth Outlook, DBS's Wee Says India’s rupee will strengthen this
quarter as growth outperforms most emerging markets and
foreigners resume purchases amid waning risk aversion, according
to DBS Group Holdings Ltd.

Asia Needs Global Economic Recovery for Region to Exit Slowdown, IMF Says Asian nations will need a recovery in
the global economy before the region can exit a slowdown as its
trade and financial linkages have increased with the rest of the
world, International Monetary Fund Managing Director Dominique
Strauss-Kahn said.

Japan's Wages Slide for Second Month as Companies Cut Costs Amid Losses Japan’s wages fell for a second month
in December as manufacturers slashed production and overtime pay
amid mounting losses.

Morning Economic News - February 2, 2009

Commentary and Overnight Trading

The wait for Friday's employment report is likely to set the tone for the week in stock markets as bad expectations for this important report mute any positive news and give extra oomph to bad news. The pattern is showing up early with drops in Asian stock markets, US stock market futures and oil. The "flight to quality" pattern is holding again in currency markets with the dollar up against the euro, pound and Canadian dollar and down against what seems the stablest of the major currencies, the yen. [2:38 AM]

Friday's Economic News

Leading, Coincident Indicators down for Euro Zone, Mexico and Australia

The oil dependent Mexican economy took the biggest hit in November with
the Coincident Economic Index down 0.6% and the Leading Economic Index
dropping 4.5%. Of all the indicators in both indexes only one – stock
prices – improved.

What I'm Writing

Financial Roadmap: The Week Ahead February 2 to 6, 2009

This week will be a busy one with several labor market indicators, news
from the manufacturing sector including January auto sales, pending
home sales data and consumption spending. The week opens and closes
with indicators from the important areas of employment and the consumer
sector.

Low rates could cut payment time in half

At the current rates an 8.5% 30-year mortgage could be refinanced into
a 15-year mortgage at roughly the same payment – reason enough to
refinance for anyone with 3 to 5 years on a subprime loan who can
qualify now for prime rates.

What I'm Reading

Summers Carves Out Powerful Role

Obama's chief economic adviser is raising the clout of the
National Economic Council -- and the chance of internal conflict in the
administration.

How Bad? Jobs Data Offer a Clue

The first employment report for 2009, which comes out Friday, is going to be bad. The question is: How bad?

Obama Will Require Banks to Expand Lending as Condition of Government Aid President Barack Obama will require
banks to boost lending to consumers and companies in return for
taxpayer aid from the $700 billion bailout fund, in a departure
from Bush administration policy, a key lawmaker said.

Australian Investment Plans Shelved as Global Slump Hurts Mining Companies Planned investment in Australia
dropped for the first time in four years as mining companies
scaled back production because of the global economic slowdown,
Access Economics said.

Aso Risks Worsening Japan's Recession by Delaying Election He Might Lose Prime Minister Taro Aso risks
deepening Japan’s recession in order to delay an election he’s
likely to lose.

Indonesia Inflation Slows to 9-Month Low; May Allow Cut in Interest Rates Indonesia’s inflation slowed to a
nine-month low in January, giving the central bank room to cut
interest rates this week.

South Africa's Central Bank May Cut Benchmark Rate by Most in Five Years South Africa’s central bank may cut
its benchmark interest rate by 1 percentage point on Feb. 5, the
biggest reduction in more than five years, to stimulate an
economy heading toward a possible recession.

U.S. Manufacturing Probably Shrank at Fastest Since 1980 as Sales Slumped Manufacturing in the U.S. probably
shrank in January at the fastest pace in 28 years following a
collapse in sales that caused inventories to swell at the end of
2008, economists said before reports today.

Davos Dreams of Global Financial Cooperation Face Protectionist Resistance As world leaders in Davos called last
week for international cooperation to tackle the financial and
economic crisis, businessmen were complaining that the stress is
only aggravating national divides.

Thai Consumer Prices Fall for First Time in 9 Years; May Prompt Rate Cut Thailand’s consumer prices fell for
the first time in nine years in January, giving the central bank
room to cut interest rates this month.

South Korean Exports Plunge a Record 32.8%, Pointing to Deeper Asian Slump South Korea’s exports tumbled by a
record 32.8 percent in January, foreshadowing a deepening slump
in Asia’s export-driven economies.

Morning Economic News - January 28, 2009

Commentary and Overnight Trading

The drop in the Consumer Confidence Index Tuesday is particularly bad on a couple of levels. Most obviously the level was already at historic lows, so the drop makes a bad situation worse. Secondly, the fact that the Expectations Index fell even more than the Present Situation Index calls into question the Obama administration's prime weapon in reviving the economy and one where the administration seemed to have strong ammunition - Hope.

The Federal Reserve's monetary policy arm, the Federal Open Market Committee, will release a statement tomorrow, but as I noted here the Fed's commitment to a zero rate policy leaves little room for the statement to really say much. Or, as a Bloomberg article today puts it:

Fed's Shift to Zero Rates Leaves Experts Blind, Complicates Bernanke Job Investors will have a tougher time
assessing Federal Reserve policy when officials today replace
interest rates with emergency credit programs as their main
tool for steering the economy.

Still stocks are looking up heading into Wednesday with the Nikkei closing up more than half a percent and US stock market futures up almost 2% [3:22 AM Eastern]. Oil markets have recovered half a percent of Tuesday's 9% drop. With nothing to indicate a demand rebound, a Goldman Sachs report indicating that oil is not ready to rise and another inventory report due out Wednesday, the 9% drop seems more sensible than the rebound. The dollar is up against the yen, down against the euro, pound and Canadian dollar, likely on contrarian profit taking.

Tuesday's Economic Numbers

Consumer Confidence Index - January 2009

• Expectations Index: 43.0


• Monthly Change: Down 1.2

Case-Shiller Housing Price Index - November 2008

• Composite 20 Index: 154.59


• Monthly Change: Down 2.2%

What I'm Reading

Home Prices Slide, Angst Rises

U.S. home prices in the 20 areas tracked by
S&P/Case-Shiller fell 18.2% in November from a year earlier.
Consumer confidence hit a new low.

Unemployment Rises in Every State

State unemployment rates increased across the country in
December, new data show, underscoring how the recession has spared few
industries or regions.

Australian Consumer Prices Decline Most in 11 Years Amid Looming Recession Australian consumer prices declined
by the most in 11 years last quarter, increasing scope for the
central bank to cut interest rates as evidence mounts the
economy is heading for its first recession since 1991.

Dudley Brings Crisis Experience to Job as New York Federal Reserve Chief William Dudley, named president of
the Federal Reserve Bank of New York today, kept up his stamina
during last year’s all-night talks on the financial crisis by
napping on the carpet of his office at the bank.

Japan Finance Ministry Cuts View of Regional Economy as Recession Deepens Japan’s Finance Ministry lowered its
assessment of the regional economy for a fourth straight quarter
as companies cut production in the wake of a collapse in exports.

South Korean Consumer Confidence Rises From 10-Year Low on Stimulus, Rates South Korea’s consumer confidence
rose in January from a 10-year low on optimism interest-rate
cuts and the government’s 51 trillion won ($37 billion) stimulus
may help to revive the economy.

Morning Economic News - January 27, 2009

Commentary and Overnight Trading

While investors were understandably excited over the double upside surprise Monday - actual increases in both the Existing Home Sales Index and the Leading Index - there are a few notes of caution appropriate going into Tuesday. First, the big housing indicator due out Tuesday is the Case-Shiller Price Index, which is very unlikely to post an upward surprise. The Existing Home Sales report showed a fairly sizeably month-to-month drop in home prices and the Case-Shiller index, which focuses on the most overheated big metro markets has performed worse on prices than the existing home sales report for several months. It's doubtful that the trend is going to reverse right now. Second, that increase in the Leading Index was driven heavily by Federal Reserve actions which boosted two components of the index directly, the money supply and the interest rate spread. There was very little evidence that those actions had bled through to affect other leading indicators and no indication that there were any current effects, as the Coincident Index fell 0.5%.

On the other hand, the Existing Home Sales report is usually considered a lagging indicator. In normal times, this would mean that existing home sales would not start to rise until after the general economy was beginning to recover. Because this recession is driven so heavily by the housing market, that probably doesn't apply completely, but it is still reason to consider the good news especially good.

Oil markets seem to be liking the news, with the futures price north of $46 in spite of the dollar rising against the yen and the Canadian dollar. The dollar had risen against the pound and euro earlier, but is currently down a quarter to half percent against those currencies. [1:02 AM Eastern] Japan's Nikkei index is up more than 5.5% with an hour and a half left to the close. US stock market futures are up more than 1% for the three major indexes.

Monday's Economic Numbers

Existing Home Sales - December 2008

• Total Existing Home Sales Annual Rate: 4.74 million units


• Monthly Change: Up 6.5%

Leading Index - December 2008

• Leading Index: Up 0.3%


• Coincident Index: Down 0.5%


• Lagging Index: Down 0.4%

What I'm Reading

Goldman Sachs: Economy Looks Bad for 2010. Sorry, Democrats.

Big Mideast Funds Scale Back

Sovereign wealth funds, among the stars of last year's World Economic Forum, are a lot more skittish this time around.

U.S. Retail Sales Are Expected to Drop

U.S. retail sales are forecast to decline 0.5% this year as
consumers continue to pull back, according to the National Retail
Federation.

Fed Move Into `Uncharted Waters' Spurs Pressure to Overhaul Its Forecasts Federal Reserve officials are
considering an overhaul of their economic forecasting, aiming to
make clear their objectives for growth and inflation in the aftermath of the longest recession since the 1930s.

Bank of Japan Focusing on Easing Corporate Borrowing Costs, Minutes Show Bank of Japan policy board members
said they should focus on lowering longer-term borrowing costs
for companies after cutting the overnight rate to 0.l percent in
December, meeting minutes show.

Subbarao May Keep Indian Interest Rates on Hold After Cutting to Record India's central bank Governor Duvvuri
Subbarao may keep interest rates unchanged today after lowering
them to a record this month.

Australian Business Confidence Rises From Record Low on Stimulus Measures Australian business confidence rose
in December from a record low as a government stimulus package
and the most aggressive interest-rate cuts since the last
recession in 1991 buoyed consumer spending.

Germany's Business Confidence May Drop to 26-Year Low as Recession Deepens German business confidence probably
fell to the lowest level in more than 26 years in January as the
global recession damped exports, prompting companies to curb
production and cut jobs.

Philippine Imports Fell Most in 10 Years in November Amid Slowing Demand Philippine imports fell the most in
10 years in November as manufacturers reduced purchases amid
slowing demand at home and abroad.

Morning Economic News - January 26, 2009

Commentary and Overnight Trading

The Nikkei dropped less than 1% Monday, while US stock market futures are also down less than 1%, pushing Dow Jones Industrial futures below the 8,000 mark. Oil futures are down nearly 2%, but still above $45. The dollar is up against the Canadian dollar, euro and pound, down slightly against the yen.

With bad news expected Monday on the existing home sales front and from the Leading Index, an upside surprise, even in the form of a smaller than expected drop, has the potential to fuel a rebound from a weak couple of weeks. A reboudn would be especially good news because the S&P is down about 70 points for the month and since 1979 the S&P has followed the January trend for the entire year 32 of 39 times.

What I'm Writing

Financial Roadmap: The Week Ahead January 26 to 30, 2009

The Durable Goods Orders report Thursday from the Commerce Department
may be the most important figure we see this week. A drop is expected
but reports and rumors are that many consumers after more than a year
of cutbacks in personal spending and businesses which have been
pinching pennies for over a year are reaching the point where
replacement of aging durables is no longer optional. With the other
bits of good news for consumers – lower interest rates finally
trickling through in some cases, lower costs of energy and food – pent
up demand for durable goods could lead the way out of this economic
downturn. The main question is «When?»

What I'm Reading

GM to Invest TARP Dough in Brazil

World's Elite Visit Davos in Doubt

Business and political leaders in Davos will meet as the
IMF Wednesday is to cut its global-growth forecast to below 1% for the
year.

Reports to Reveal Shoppers' Cutbacks

A slew of earnings reports from consumer-staples makers will show just how much consumers have cut back.

Gap, H&M's Cambodian Garment Suppliers Keep Tax Breaks to Combat Recession Cambodia, reliant on overseas aid to
finance a quarter of the national budget, said it will extend
tax breaks for clothing manufacturers and invest in power plants
as a cash shortage restricts its ability to provide economic
stimulus.

Economy in U.S. Probably Contracted Most Since 1982 as Spending Collapsed The worst credit crisis since the
Great Depression sent the U.S. economy into a tailspin at the end
of 2008 as consumers and businesses retrenched, reports this week
may show.

Japan Government-Owned Lender May Take Stakes in Non-Financial Companies A Japanese state-owned bank may take
stakes in non-financial companies to help them weather the global
recession, people familiar with the plan said.

South African Inflation Probably Slowed, Making Room for Interest-Rate Cut South African inflation probably
slowed for the fourth consecutive month in December, adding to
pressure on the central bank to accelerate interest rates cuts.

Bank of Israel Will Probably Cut Key Rate Half a Point to a Record 1.25% The Bank of Israel will probably
lower its benchmark lending rate tomorrow to a record as
Governor Stanley Fischer seeks to shore up flagging economic
growth, a survey showed.

U.K. Economy Shrinks 1.5 Percent in the Fourth Quarter: Table of the Day Following are the preliminary GDP growth estimates
for the fourth quarter from the Office for National Statistics in London:

Morning Economic News - January 23, 2009

Commentary and Overnight Trading

The Nikkei dropped more than 3% Friday and the S&P/ASX200 has dropped more than 4% on bad news from the Australian mining sector. The Hang Seng was down 3% earlier, but is near even now [2:44 AM Eastern]. US stock market futures are down a little less than 1%. Oil prices have dropped but remain well above $42/barrel. The dollar is up strongly against the euro and pound, up a bit against the loonie and down slighlty against the yen.

Thursday's Economic News

Housing Starts - December 2008

• Housing Starts: 550,000


• Monthly Change: Down 15.5%


• Year-to-year Change: Down 45%


• 1-Family Monthly Change: Down 13.5%

Jobless Claims - January 22, 2009

• Initial Claims: 589,000


• Change from Last Week: Up 62,000

Money Supply - January 22, 2009

• M1 Seasonally Adjusted Prior Month: $1595.8 billion


• M1 Annual Change (Unadjusted): $238.3 billion

Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey - January 22, 2009

• Purchase Index: 303.1


• Change: Up 2.5%

German economy took big hit in November

The Leading Index for Germany fell 2.2% in November and the Coincident
Index fell 0.5%, according to a Conference Board report released
Thursday. Only three of the eleven indicators included in the indexes
improved.

What I'm Writing

Markets shrug off another big oil inventory gain

The weekly oil report from the US Energy Department showed a big
increase in total commercial petroleum stocks, including increases in
crude oil and all the major refined products except propane, which is
used heavily for heating in the rural Midwest which just experienced a
cold snap. Other tidbits from the report included a substantial drop in
refinery activity and continued drops year-to-year in gasoline
consumption despite a price drop of 39% from this time last year.

New purchase applications up despite rate increase, trouble in refinances

Despite the increase in rates, the Mortgage Bankers Association reported a 2.5% increase in purchase mortgage applications.

The Banker's Depression

Meanwhile, bankers are just sitting on a pile of new money - the
Federal Reserve has printed and put in bank reserves $238 billion new
dollars in the last 12 months. That's a massive 15% increase in the
monetary base (M1 for the technically minded). But bankers aren't
lending it.

What I'm Reading

Microsoft Job Cuts: Layoffs Good News for Economy

I would bet that these job cuts are going to force a lot of people to
find their inner-entrepreneur. These ex-Microsofties are going to end
up starting a lot of small businsees that may eventually grow in size
to become some pretty profitable companies. Who knows, Microsoft may
inadvertently be creating another Gooogle or Apple or, yes, Microsoft.
Creative destruction, gang

Tough GOPers Stand Up to Geithner; All GOPers Should Counter Keynesian Stimulus

Right now capital is on strike. So are investors. Supply-side incentives will bring them back. This is where the GOP must go.

Fed Likely to Focus on Rates, Loans

Fed officials are likely next week to keep their approach for handling the financial crisis, despite internal divisions.

Housing Starts in U.S. Tumble 16% to Lowest on Record as Credit Dries Up Home prices in the U.S. dropped the
most in at least 18 years and builders broke ground on the
fewest houses since record-keeping began as the recession
deepened, government reports said today.

Australia May Cut Interest Rate Below 2% Amid Deep Recession, Fraser Says Australia’s central bank may more
than halve its benchmark interest rate as the nation enters a
long and deep recession, former Governor Bernie Fraser said.

China's Slowdown to Deepen as Recession Pummels Exports, Asian Suppliers China’s economic slowdown, already
the deepest in seven years, is set to worsen as the global
recession pummels its exports, darkening the outlook for
suppliers from Australia to Taiwan.

Geithner Warning on Yuan May Trigger Renewed U.S.-China Economic Tensions Timothy Geithner’s warning that
President Barack Obama believes China is “manipulating” its
currency may trigger renewed tensions between two of the world’s
three biggest economies.

JPMorgan Forecasts Larger Australian Rate Cut Next Month Amid Global Slump JPMorgan Chase & Co. forecasts the
Australian central bank will cut its benchmark interest rate by
1 percentage point next month, double its previous prediction,
amid a deepening slump in the nation’s major export markets.

Singapore Lowers Corporate Tax, Spends Record Amount Amid Worst Recession Singapore cut corporate taxes for
the second time in three years and said it will tap its reserves
to fund record spending amid efforts to drag the island’s
economy out of its deepest recession since independence.

Roubini Says China Is in Recession Despite `Massaged' Economic Growth Data China is in a recession despite
government statistics today showing the world’s third-largest
economy expanded in the fourth quarter from a year earlier,
according to Nouriel Roubini, the New York University professor
who predicted last year’s economic crisis.

Mining Boom Turns to Bust in Western Australia, Raising Risk of Recession Michael Smith moved 2,500 miles
across Australia in July to earn A$120,000 ($80,000) as a
blaster. Now the 30-year-old explosives expert is a motorcycle
courier making half his former wage.

Morning Economic News - January 22, 2009

Commentary and Overnight Trading

Wednesday's big economic news release was a study in how the TARP went wrong. Home builder sentiment is down again, hitting another record low. And who can blame them? They're being hit by a triple whammy, all engineered by the people who run the banks. Perhaps the bankers' massive string of errors was not purposeful and knowing, but it certainly wasn't mere happenstance either. The housing market was run to overheating by profligate lending. Builders, whose business is building houses not reading financial tea leaves, invested in building more homes since they were selling like hotcakes and profit margins were high. Then the bankers got skittish and stopped making these bad loans to consumers. Well enough. Solid builders could have weathered that storm with more creative financing, incentives, slimming down those high profit margins and just taking occasional losses where needed. But then the banks added insult to injury with the third whammy - they stopped rolling over the builders loans and began to foreclose on newly built homes, competing against the builders who often still owed them money on other loans. It's easy to feel sorry for the builders, but damn hard to feel sorry for the bankers. Thursday may bring better news on housing, in the weekly mortgage report.

US stock futures are up a fraction of a percent in overnight trading and Asian stock markets are up 1 to 2%. Oil futures have managed to add another 9/100 of a percent, a small number but a big achievement on top of Wednesday's 9% rise in the spot price and pretty speculative with the US oil inventories due out Thursday morning. The dollar is in a familiar pattern, outperforming the battered euro and pound, losing against the yen and up, despite the oil price rise, against the loonie. [2:30 AM Eastern]

Economic News

Housing Market Index - January 2009

• Current Month Index: 8


• Monthly Change: Down 1


• Current 1-Family Sales Index: 6


• Monthly Change: down 2

State Street Investor Confidence Index - January 2009

• Global Index: 60.3


• Monthly Change: Up 12.1


• Year-to-year Change: Down 9.2

French Leading Index down over 1%

The Conference Board reported another round of bad news for the French
economy Wednesday, with a 1.4% drop in the Leading Economic Index for
France and a 0.2% decline in the Coincident Index. The weakness was
widespread with only 3 of the 11 indicators in the two indexes
improving.

What I'm Reading

Should Obama Help Banks or Homeowners?

From Andy Busch of BMO Capital Markets:

The disease remains housing and home prices.This is why I expect new
TARP money to flow towards the housing market and to reduce the supply
of foreclosures.  Here's an idea:  why not declare that as of January
1st 2009, all homes in foreclosure will be purchased by TARP?  This
attacks the supply or inventory problem forcing prices down.  It would
take away a major negative driver of bank assets.  Yes, but it still
means the government has to do something with those homes. 

The best solution would be to follow the RTC model by
putting the properties together and then holding a fire sale to clear
the market.  The government would take the loss between what they pay
for the homes and what they sell them for to the market.It's this loss
that no one wants to take or absorb.  While the US taxpayer is on the
hook for it, this solution attacks the central problem.  More
importantly unlike an acronym or a "bad bank", it will stabilize home
prices.  Taxpayers can live with nationalizing or socializing home
owner losses from the real estate market much easier than they can live
with taxpayer losses from the banking industry.  Let's see which
political party picks up on this first ...

Politics Seen in Bank Bailout Decisions

As Obama's team revises TARP, it faces dissatisfaction with
the program's implementation. Some politicians, including Barney Frank,
have used leverage to seek funds for their home-state banks.

U.K. Pound Serves as Omen for Dollar

As the British pound continues to sink, its travails are a cautionary tale for the U.S. dollar.

China GDP Confirms Slowdown

China said its economy expanded 6.8% in the fourth quarter
of 2008 from a year earlier, confirming a slowdown that has cut growth
nearly in half in just a year.

China's Economy Grew 6.8% in Fourth Quarter, Slowest Pace in Seven Years China’s economy expanded at the
slowest pace in seven years as the global recession dragged down
exports, increasing pressure for more government spending and
lower interest rates to buoy growth.

South Korea's Economy Contracts More-Than-Expected 5.6% as Exports Plunge South Korea’s economy shrank a
larger-than-expected 5.6 percent last quarter, the biggest
decline since the Asian financial crisis a decade ago as exports,
business investment and consumer spending plunged.

Japan's Exports Plunge Record 35%, Signaling More Cuts in Jobs, Production Japan’s exports plunged by a record
in December, signaling companies will be forced to shut factory
lines and fire more workers, driving the economy deeper into
recession.

Bank of Japan to Consider Buying Corporate Bonds; Keeps Key Rate at 0.1% The Bank of Japan said it will
consider buying corporate bonds to prevent a shortage of credit
from worsening a recession it predicted will deepen next year.

Japanese Corporate Loan Demand Rises to Record as Recession Dries Up Funds Demand for loans among Japanese
companies surged to a record this month as falling profits and
stagnating credit markets left businesses with less cash to
operate, a central bank survey showed.

Singapore's Government May Unveil Record Budget, Tap `Rainy Day' Reserves Singapore, suffering its deepest
recession since independence, will probably announce record
spending in its budget today to help companies hurt by the
global slowdown and preserve jobs.

Vietnamese Trade Deficit Narrowed In January, Easing Currency Concerns Vietnam’s trade deficit narrowed for
the first time in more than two years, as a global recession
slashed demand for its goods as well as restricting the nation’s
appetite for products from overseas.