Mostly Negative, Losses Modest

Another negative for indices in the Asia-Pac region, taking cues from losses in the US as the prospect of tapering rears its head post-FOMC minutes. Most major markets are in the red, though losses are more contained than earlier in the week. The Hang Seng leads the way lower with losses of around 1%, while in mainland China the CSI 300 is down around 0.25% Markets in Japan are hovering around neutral, Japanese media earlier reported a state of emergency is planned to be declared in Okinawa. Australia is a bright spot, the ASX 200 rising around 0.9% as financials gained despite a miss in labour market data and a sell off in iron ore. Futures in the US are lower, Nasdaq is faring slightly better than its counterparts following late gains for tech stocks yesterday.