Chinese real estate

It's the season for reviewing the year that's ending and making predictions for the one ahead. On Tuesday, venture capitalist and DailyFinance columnist Peter Cohan was part of a TV panel that was asked: Who was the person of the year? What was the story of the year? And what will happen in 2011? Here are his answers.

Asian markets rose Tuesday. In Hong Kong the Hang Seng Index rose 1.6% and in China the Shanghai Composite Index racked up a 1.8% gain as investors continue to put their money into property. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index gained 1.5%.

Shares in Asia slid lower Friday as investors reacted to Chinese government moves to tighten credit and clamp down on inflation. In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng Index fell 0.8% to 22,877, and in China, the Shanghai Composite sank 0.9% to 2,872. Japan's Nikkei 225 Index edged down 0.4% to 10,040.

Want to know what Beijing really believes about China's red-hot economy, its real estate market or the state of the global recovery? Look at whether it allows China's currency to rise against the dollar.

In Hong Kong Wednesday, the Hang Seng index lost 0.3%, ending the day at 22,840. In China, the Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.6% to close at 3,303, while in Japan, the Nikkei Index fell 0.6% to 9,677. In Hong Kong, property companies led the decline, as fears that a property bubble pumped up by...