Demand for protecting against bull yen softening - Scotiabank

Analysts at Scotiabank explained that JPY is quiet, consolidating within a tight range following a cumulative 1.5% decline from Monday’s fresh high.

Key Quotes:

"The broader tone continues to dominate and risk is elevated as we look to the release of China’s Q1 GDP data at 10:00pm EST with implications for both sentiment and fundamentals.

Stronger data from China would likely bolster risk appetite in a manner similar to that observed following the release of trade figures earlier this week and help reaffirm the central bank policy divergence narrative in terms of the outlook for the Fed and BoJ.

The 2Y U.S.-Japan yield spread has widened 10bpts over the past week and risk appears balanced to the upside. In terms of risk reversals, we note a renewed softening in demand for protection against JPY strength.

Domestically, FX-focused rhetoric has continued as Finance Minister Aso highlighted the ‘undesirable’ nature of ‘abrupt’ and ‘disordered’ currency moves."