Stocks in China & HK provided the............>

STOCKS: Stocks in China & HK provided the fireworks during Asia-Pacific hours,

struggling on a combination of stories relating to liquidity matters. Monday saw

the Washington Post release a piece which noted that "a U.S. judge has found

three large Chinese banks contempt for refusing to comply with subpoenas in an

investigation into North Korean sanctions violations. The order triggers for the

first time a provision that could cut off one of China's largest banks from the

U.S. financial system at the demand of the U.S. attorney general or treasury

secretary." Elsewhere, BBG noted that "one of the most opaque areas of China's

credit markets involves the practice of companies buying their own bonds. That

may soon get a lot tougher, contributing to financing difficulties that are

already bedevilling the nation's policy makers."

- The remainder of the major regional equity markets traded in lacklustre

fashion, while the aforementioned Chinese issues dragged U.S. equity index

futures lower as the session wound on.

- Nikkei 225 -0.5%, Hang Seng -1.4%, CSI 300 -2.0%, ASX 200 unch.

- S&P 500 futures -7, DJIA futures -50, NASDAQ 1000 futures -32.