A new chapter opened for Tokyo risk assets on Friday as the Nikkei index surged past the 13,000 mark after the Bank of Japan unleashed a monetary onslaught of $1.4 trillion in stimulus, but the rest of Asia's stock markets tumbled to multi-month lows.
Paul Bloxham, Chief Economist for Australia and New Zealand at HSBC, says that monetary policy in Australia is hitting the bull's eye in terms of the government's desired targets. He also describes why China's growth story is showing no signs of losing steam as he expects growth to touch north of 8%.
Risk appetite in Asia was hurt after economic data for the region's two largest economies came in below expectations, while overall trading volume remained subdued given the closure of some markets for the Easter holidays.