Asia This Day:Japan Restarts Nuclear Plant;Confidence Up

Despite loud protests,Japan has restarted its Fukui Prefecture Ohi nuclear power plant,saying the quality of life was being hurt by the recent switch to more expensive fossil fuels.The country had placed a moratorium on nuclear power a few months ago for safety checks in the wake of last year's meltdown at the Fukushima nuclear plant.
The Tankan survey of Japanese large companies showed a greater than expected increase in business confidence.Australian home prices rebounded the most in two years on rate cuts,while manufacturing contracted at a slower pace in June than in May.
The HSBC China Purchasing Managers Index fell to 48.2 in June from 48.4 in May.It has shown contraction for the past eight months.Manufacturing orders and export demand are down on the Euro-zone debt crisis.The Shanghai Composite Index was down 0.42% in early Monday trading on the news.
Hong Kong's stock market is closed today following the inauguration of the territory's new chief executive,C.Y. Leung,on Sunday morning.Chinese Premier Hu Jintao attended the ceremony.Tens of thousands of protesters marched through the streets,denouncing Mr.Leung,a former real estate executive,as a Beijing figurehead.A big fireworks display was nontheless held to celebrate the 15th anniversary of the handover of Hong Kong to China by the U.K.
India's Nifty Fifty stock futures index rose on optimism about a Euro-zone agreement on how to resolve the debt problem.
iShares MSCI Japan Index Fund(EWJ)

China's Growth to Continue

China's growth will not slow further after the Olympics.The slowdown this year has been on account of exports dropping and government policies,says Tom Quinn of The Jordan Company,a private equity firm.Growth for 2007 was 11.4%.The forecast for 2008 is 8-10%.The Shanghai Composite Index is down 48% this year.The Chinese government needs to continue improving the standard of living.China has 350 years worth of coal in the ground.There is tremendous investment in infrastructure such as railroads and highways.China must develop the central and northern parts of the country,Mr.Quinn indicated.