Overview: A consolidative tone has emerged ahead of the outcome of the FOMC meeting later today. The focus is not so much on the 75 bp rate hike, but on its forward guidance. Many expect the Fed to signal it will return to a 50 bp move next month, but we are not convinced that it will go beyond indicating that 50 bp or 75 bp will be debated in December, depending on the data. The market has a 5% terminal rate discounted. The Fed does not need to validate it now....
Read More »RBA Hikes by 25 bp, Chinese Stocks Surge, and the Greenback Trades Heavier
Overview: Risk appetites have returned today. Bonds and stocks are advancing, while the dollar is better offered. Unsourced claims that Beijing has formed a committee to assess how to exit the zero-Covid policy sent Chinese shares sharply higher. An index of mainland companies list in Hong Kong jumped nearly 7% and closed up almost 5.5%. The Hang Seng surged 5.2%, while all the large markets in the region advanced. Europe’s Stoxx 600 recovered yesterday and is up...
Read More »The Dollar Returns from the Weekend Bid
Overview: The dollar has come back from the weekend bid. After the ECB and BOJ meetings last week, the focus has shifted back to the US where the FOMC meeting concludes in the middle of the week and the October employment report is out ahead of the weekend. Sterling and the yen are the weakest performers among the G10 currencies and are off 0.45%-0.50%. The Antipodeans are performing best and are straddling little changed levels. Emerging market currencies are lower,...
Read More »Greenback Holds Above JPY150, while BOJ goes MIA
Overview: The continued surge in US rates and inability of the equity market to sustain gains saw the post-Truss sterling rally unwind amid a broader recovery of the dollar. Sterling has been sold to new lows for the week. Meanwhile, the dollar has held above JPY150, and the BOJ hand has not been seen. It rose to almost JPY151 in Europe. Equity markets are on the defensive. Nearly all the bourses in Asia fell, and the 1.65% drop of the Stoxx 600 is the biggest loss...
Read More »Dollar Trades Above JPY150 and Truss Gets No Reprieve
Overview: China and Japan continue to struggle to stabilize their currencies, while global interest rates rise. The offshore yuan has fallen to new lows but in late dealings the onshore and offshore yuan have recovered. The dollar also traded above JPY150 for the first time since 1990 and the market knows it is on thin ice as with the threat of official intervention. A risk-off mood permeates. Equity markets have retreated in the Asia Pacific region and Europe. US...
Read More »Currency and Bond Markets Challenge the Bank of Japan
Overview: Asia Pacific equities were mixed as the China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and South Korean markets, among the large markets were unable to gain in the wake of a solid performance in the US. Europe is also struggling to maintain the upside momentum that has lifted the Stoxx 600 for the past four sessions. It is nearly flat as this note is penned. US futures are firm. Benchmark bond yields are higher, and the 10-year US Treasury yield is edging above 4.05%. European...
Read More »Dollar Recovers from Yesterday’s Stunning Reversal, but has Sentiment Turned in North America?
Overview: There has been little follow-through dollar selling so far today after yesterday’s dramatic downside reversal after the initial flurry of buying in response to the stronger than expected US CPI. Still, the upticks look corrective in nature and the intraday momentum indicators are stretched, raising the prospect of new sales by North American operators today. The sharp recovery in US equities did carry over into Asia and Europe where most bourses are ending...
Read More »Can We Look Past US CPI ?
Overview: There seems to be a nervous calm today ahead of the US CPI. The dollar is hovering near JPY147 but the risk of BOJ intervention in the North American session seems slim. The BOE’s emergency Gilt buying operation ends tomorrow and UK bonds yields have tumbled. While equities in the Asia Pacific region lost ground, Europe’s Stoxx 600 is trying to snap a six-day decline. US equity futures are firm. Yields in Europe are mostly 3-6 bp lower, and despite...
Read More »Bank of England Steps in to Buy Inflation-Linked Bonds for the First Time
Overview: The dollar continues to ride high. It reached its highest level against the yen since the recent intervention. The Canadian dollar has fallen to its lowest level in two-and-a-half years and the New Zealand dollar is approaching the 2020 extreme. The greenback is firmer against all the major currencies but the Swiss franc, and against nearly all the emerging market currencies today. Equities have been sold. Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan re-opened after...
Read More »New Week, but same Old Stocks (Heavier) and Dollar (Stronger)
Overview: The start of the new week has not broken the bearish drive lower in equities. Several Asia Pacific centers were closed, including Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea. China’s markets re-opened, and the new US sanctions coupled with the disappointing Caixin service and composite PMI took its toll. The CSI 300 was off 2.2% and the Hang Seng dropped nearly 3%. After falling 1.2% at the end of last week, Europe’s Stoxx 600 gapped lower today and is off almost...
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