9 Mar 2015
Asia Recap: The US Dollar keeps its dominance
FXStreet (Bali) - Following last Friday's blockbuster US NFP, the US Dollar kept strengthening across the Asian session, with the Kiwi and the Aussie the most vulnerable.
AUD/USD saw its lowest print at 0.7684, with Chinese trade balance figures over the weekend to blame, as we saw a major drop in imports, a negative input for the Australian economy, which depends heavily in trade activity with the 'Big Panda.' AUD/USD looks poised to target 0.7625, notes Valeria Bednarik, Chief Analyst at FXStreet.
NZD/USD led the losses in the FX commodity complex this time, with comments from the New Zealand PM Key, speaking at a news conference on changes to mortgage, weighing. Key said that the RBNZ is looking at tools so they don't have to tighten, adding that there is no upward pressure on inflation in New Zealand, and that it could slow further.
USD/JPY kept its firm tone, all within a limited range, with an initial shallow retreat towards 120.00 bought up by leveraged names, allowing a revisit of 121.20, falling a few pips short from last Friday's post US NFP high. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index had declined by 0.63% ahead of the close. On the fundamental front, Japan's Gross Domestic Product (seasonally adjusted) for Q4 (final) came at +0.4 % QoQ vs +0.5% expected and QoQ +0.4% prior.
In other fundamental news, Greek FinMin Varoufakis warned of either an early election or a referendum should the EU reject the latest Greek proposals, according to Italian daily Corriere della Sera. "There could be problems, but we are not yet glued to our chairs. We can return to elections, call a referendum", Varoufakis said.
Meanwhile, via Bloomberg, referring to a report in Schweiz am Sonntag, we learnt that SNB may be considering to cut its deposit rate as low as -1.5% from the current -0.75% should the CHF move in the 'wrong direction'. The report highlighted SNB's desire for a minimum 1.10 level in EUR/CHF.
AUD/USD saw its lowest print at 0.7684, with Chinese trade balance figures over the weekend to blame, as we saw a major drop in imports, a negative input for the Australian economy, which depends heavily in trade activity with the 'Big Panda.' AUD/USD looks poised to target 0.7625, notes Valeria Bednarik, Chief Analyst at FXStreet.
NZD/USD led the losses in the FX commodity complex this time, with comments from the New Zealand PM Key, speaking at a news conference on changes to mortgage, weighing. Key said that the RBNZ is looking at tools so they don't have to tighten, adding that there is no upward pressure on inflation in New Zealand, and that it could slow further.
USD/JPY kept its firm tone, all within a limited range, with an initial shallow retreat towards 120.00 bought up by leveraged names, allowing a revisit of 121.20, falling a few pips short from last Friday's post US NFP high. The benchmark Nikkei 225 index had declined by 0.63% ahead of the close. On the fundamental front, Japan's Gross Domestic Product (seasonally adjusted) for Q4 (final) came at +0.4 % QoQ vs +0.5% expected and QoQ +0.4% prior.
In other fundamental news, Greek FinMin Varoufakis warned of either an early election or a referendum should the EU reject the latest Greek proposals, according to Italian daily Corriere della Sera. "There could be problems, but we are not yet glued to our chairs. We can return to elections, call a referendum", Varoufakis said.
Meanwhile, via Bloomberg, referring to a report in Schweiz am Sonntag, we learnt that SNB may be considering to cut its deposit rate as low as -1.5% from the current -0.75% should the CHF move in the 'wrong direction'. The report highlighted SNB's desire for a minimum 1.10 level in EUR/CHF.