Overview: The dollar is trading with a softer bias in mostly narrow ranges against the G10 currencies. It did not rally much ahead of the US jobs data, and it was not able to sustain the upside momentum afterwards, despite the jump in US yields. Former St. Louis Fed President Bullard, who still has a strong reputation in the market, told Bloomberg TV yesterday that three cuts were his base case this year. The Scandis and Antipodeans are the strongest today, up about...
Read More »Will the Market Push the Dollar Above JPY152 as Japanese Prime Minister Heads to the US?
Overview: The jump in US rates after the employment report failed to ignite a sustained rally in the dollar and this shaken the market's near-term confidence. The dollar has been mostly confined to narrow ranges and the low yielding Swiss franc and Japanese yen are softest with the G10 complex today. The dollar is knocking on JPY152. The Scandis and Antipodeans lead the advancers. The euro has made little headway despite a much stronger than expected German...
Read More »China PMI is Better than Expected but the Greenback Still Rises above CNY7.23
Overview: The dollar is trading quietly against the G10 currencies as European markets remain on holiday. Narrow ranges have prevailed. The dollar-bloc currencies are leading with minor gains, perhaps helped on the margins by better-than-expected Chinese PMI, but the Scandis, which also typically do well amid a better global growth profile are the laggards. This may speak to the light liquidity conditions. Japan may have missed a tactical opportunity to intervene to...
Read More »Waller Pushes on Open Door: Push for Patience Lifts the Dollar, Complicating Japanese Efforts
Overview: Comments by Fed Governor Waller, urging patience on rates and wanting more evidence that price pressures are moderating has helped the greenback extend its recent gains. The yen is the notable exception as the fear of intervention has restrained the dollar bulls. Poor German data, including a sharp 1.9% drop in February retail sales, the fourth consecutive monthly decline, underscored the euro's negative divergence, and the single currency was sold to new...
Read More »Heightened Threat of Japanese Intervention Pushes Greenback Away from JPY152
Overview: The dollar neared JPY152, setting a new 34-year high. This appeared to spur a senior official meeting in Tokyo, ostensibly to talk about the response. Previously, we suggested that Friday, when most markets outside of Asia will be closed, could provide an interesting opportunity for intervention. The implicit threat was enough to take the dollar to JPY151.10 in the European morning. Most of the G10 currencies are softer against the dollar but the yen. A...
Read More »Dollar’s Recent Gains Pared but Firm Undertone Remains Intact
Overview: After surging at the last week, the dollar consolidated yesterday and is continuing to do so today as slightly lower levels. The Swiss franc is the only G10 currency unable to gain traction against the greenback today. Still, the dollar's pullback has barely met the minimum retracement targets of the jump last Thursday and Friday. The PBOC lower the dollar's fix slightly, but the proverbial toothpaste is out of the tube and officials are struggling to...
Read More »Dollar Extends Gains Against the Yen but Broadly Firmer Ahead of the FOMC
Overview: The US dollar remains bid ahead of the outcome of today's FOMC meeting. No change in policy is expected, but the forward guidance, partly delivered in the updated projections, is the focus. In the last iteration (December), the Fed "dot" was for three rate cuts this year. Japanese markets were closed for a national holiday today but dollar's gains against the yen have been extended and the greenback is nearing the peak seen in the last two years slightly...
Read More »Heightened Speculation of a BOJ Move Tomorrow did not Stop the Nikkei from Rallying or Yen from Slipping
Overview: The US dollar is trading with a mostly softer bias against the G10 currencies. The notable exceptions are the Japanese yen and Swiss franc. Ironically, speculation of a Bank of Japan rate hike appears to have increased, while there is a risk that the Swiss National Bank cuts rates this week. The Norwegian krone is the strongest of the major currencies. The central bank meets later this week but is widely expected to stand pat. The continued rise in oil...
Read More »Euro’s Recovery to $1.09 Looks Vulnerable while Yen Falls to New Lows for the Week After Strong Pay Raises Confirmed
Overview: At the end of last week, the derivatives market was again pricing in nearly four Fed cuts this year, but this week's data have seen expectations re-converge with the Fed's three rate cuts signaled in December, while cutting the odds of June hike to the lowest in the more than four months. This has helped lift the dollar against all the G10 currencies this week. As is often the case in a firm US dollar environment, the Canadian dollar has fared the best,...
Read More »Consolidation Featured Ahead of Tomorrow’s US Retail Sales and Friday’s Japanese Wage News
Overview: We came into this week expecting the dollar to rise on the back of a recovery in rates. The two-year note has risen from 4.40% after the jobs report to 4.60%. The dollar's rise has been less impressive. The Dollar Index had begun with week with a six-day fall in tow. Today is it is rising for the third session. However, the gains have been a modest 0.80% off the pre-weekend lows. The dollar broadly is consolidating in narrow ranges thus far today in quiet...
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