Japan credit default swaps in quiet start to New Year

Credit default swaps on Japanese names were unchanged on Monday, as market participants came back for a half day after the long New Year holiday.

Traders said none of the names that usually trade were active and swaps spreads were still where they were before the holiday. One dealer also noted that some of the names did not even have two-way quotes. The mood was largely wait-and-see today, as full trading will only resume tomorrow.

But brokers said trading is likely to remain subdued given the continued threat of war in Iraq and political tensions elsewhere in the Middle East and North Korea, deflation concerns in Japan, and continued