Japan Core Machine Orders On Tap For Thursday

(RTTNews) - Japan will on Thursday release December figures for core machine orders, highlighting a modest day for Asia-Pacific economic activity.

Orders are expected to rise 3.1 percent on month and 4.5 percent on year after sliding 5.1 percent on month and climbing 10.4 percent on year in November.

Japan also will see January figures for money stock and machine tool orders. In December, the M2 money stock was up 4.0 percent on year and M3 was up 3.5 percent. Tool orders climbed 4.4 percent on year in December.

Australia will see December numbers for new home sales and Q4 figures for the NAB business confidence index. Home sales climbed 6.1 percent on month in November, while the NAB index had a score of +5.

The central bank in the Philippines will wrap up its monetary policy meeting and then announce its decision on interest rates. The bank is widely expected to keep its benchmark lending rate unchanged at 3.00 percent.

Finally, the markets in Malaysia are closed on Thursday for Thaipusam, and will re-open on Friday.