US and European stocks fall but Japanese stocks gaining favour

Markets mostly fell on Monday.

At the start of the day, Asian stocks rose, with the MSCI Asia Pacific Index rising 0.8 percent.

However, European stocks failed to follow through, with the STOXX Europe 600 declining 0.8 percent.

US stocks also fell. The S&P 500 declined 0.5 percent.

The fall in the US stock market ended a four-day winning streak and comes as analysts warn that valuations may be getting stretched.

John Reese, co-founder at Validea Capital Management, is one of those who think that US stocks may be overvalued.

In a CNBC article, Reese wrote that the current market cap/GDP ratio of nearly 125 percent is “the highest it has been...since the market went over a cliff in 2000”.

Indeed, some analysts now think that Japan's stock market may be a better bet.

“Japan is now our top pick in global equity regions, replacing the U.S.,” Jonathan Garner, Morgan Stanley's chief Asia and emerging market equity strategist, said in a note on Sunday.