IT'S not over till the fat lady sings'' is a favourite saying for retreating Americans, but there is mounting evidence that investors from the United States are beginning to leave the Asian markets.
They are not alone but, as the most recent and significant players in Southeast Asia's bull run, their signal is that other pastures look greener after the appreciation in share values last year.
How a market takes on a stance when previously its collective members were full of confidence is fundamental to all those with exposure to share values.
Emerging markets throw up more conflicting signals than any other. Clearing a passage through the morass are strategists of the big brokerages and fund management companies.
It is impossible to pinpoint why a bull market stalls at a particular moment but when international capital inflows have been a significant factor, the decisions of the big name strategists advising these funds becomes central to the answer.
It is these strategists who are charged with the task of informing the investing public when it is time to get out and take profits.