Good morning traders!

In Asia today, the Nikkei was last up 152.05 points at 8,632.04 while the Hang
Seng reached the midpoint up 347.52 points at 13,969.63.

Crude oil was trading up 56 cents at $53.30 a barrel on Nymex.

Happy trading!

G.

Morning all. Market reports:

Telegraph
The Times
The Times (Need to know)
FT
The Guardian
The Independent
This is Money

US Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner shocked global markets by revealing that Washington is "quite open" to Chinese proposals for the gradual development of a global reserve currency run by the International Monetary Fund.
US backing for world currency stuns markets

It started out as a call from the likes of George Soros and Ted Truman. But the IMFs little known international accounting system of special drawing rights [SDRs] has now been propelled straight into the limelight thanks to both China and Russia.
Is a global super-currency on the agenda?

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner will ask Congress to bring large hedge funds, private-equity firms and derivatives markets under federal supervision for the first time as part of a revamp of US financial rules.
US Treasury chief Geithner seeks power over hedge funds, private equity and derivatives

David Bloom, Global Head of FX Research, at HSBC thinks the world has run out of fire power. Bloom told CNBC Europe on Wednesday that in his eyes the world is now divided into two pieces - the QE countries, and the non-QE countries. And its the non-QE countries like Norway, Australia and the EuroZone bloc that will come out on top
No fire power left

Fears are growing on the financial markets that Britain may not be able to repay the billions of pounds in debt it is amassing to rescue banks and revive the economy.
City alarm as Treasury fails to sell Government gilts

A Citigroup investment management unit is to start fundraising for a new fund that will look to buy up the debt of banks.
Citi plans fund to buy bank debt

Warren Buffett, the second-richest man in the world with a fortune of $37bn (25.4bn), is facing the ignominy of seeing his investment company stripped of its remaining triple-A credit rating following its worst financial performance since 1965.
Berkshire Hathaway triple-A credit rating put at risk

Yet lurking in today's miserable trade figures was - possibly - an encouraging snapshot of how Japan's private sector is coping. Those collapsing import numbers, coupled with the narrow and wholly unexpected restoration of the trade surplus, suggest two things: that Japan Inc is far more ruthless than either the Japanese or outside world gave it credit for; and that its stock market is dirt cheap.
Japan's harsh new reality

NIKKEI 225	AUSTRALIA ASX200	SHANGHAI	HANG SENG

KOSPI	VIX	GOLD	NYMEX CRUDE

End-of-day Market Overview