Share prices in Japan fell yesterday despite signs that global stocks were beginning to bounce back from the worldwide sell-off which has rocked the markets over the past week.
Signalling that Japanese investors remain nervous, Tokyo's Nikkei 225 benchmark index closed down 0.5 per cent, despite other Asian markets rallying to end higher.
In China, the Shanghai Composite index closed up 1.9 per cent, while in Australia, the S&P/ASX index was up 0.9 per cent, aided by new figures showing higher than expected growth in the fourth quarter.
"Anyone who was scared of investing in stocks because of global growth fears may find themselves reassessing that view," Tom Murphy, of Deutsche Bank AG in Sydney was quoted as saying by Bloomberg.
Stocks were sent plummeting across the world last Tuesday following a slump in Chinese shares amid speculation the government would impose new regulations on the country's burgeoning economy.
Wider fears about the health of the US economy, the world's largest, also prompted the sell off.
US treasury secretary Henry Paulson yesterday sought to reinsure investors that global economic growth was "solid", prompting shares in Asia's emerging markets to rise, with European shares also up early today.
However, amid concern that investors remain worried, the FTSE 100 index fell slightly in early trading this morning, despite having closed up 1.32 per cent in the previous session, when stocks showed some sign of recovering from the dip of almost five per cent experienced last week.
"I don't think that many people are saying we are out of the woods yet because we had a one-day rally," said Jeremy Batstone, head of research at Charles Stanley.
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