By Anne D. Picker, International Economist, Econoday
Monday, January 20, 2003

As though equity investors didn't have enough problems already, earnings season is underway. Tepid earnings so far have muted stocks, as have geopolitical worries and anemic U.S. economic data. Overseas, investors fretted about the falling value of the dollar and the impact it could have on their export-dependent economies, especially in Germany and Japan. Although Japanese markets were up on the week, most others were weighed down by world events. On the week, four of the indexes followed here were up anywhere from 1.3 percent (South Korean Kospi) to 2.6 percent (both the Japanese Nikkei and Topix). The rest were down, anywhere from 0.3 percent (Australian all ordinaries) to 4.9 percent (NASDAQ).

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